[HISTORY: Adopted by the Representative Town Meeting of the Town
of Fairfield 5-20-1996. Amendments noted where applicable.]
This chapter shall be known as the "Adult-Oriented Establishments Ordinance
for the Town of Fairfield."
The Representative Town Meeting of the Town of Fairfield, Connecticut
(hereinafter the "RTM"), finds:
A.Â
There are presently and may in the future be adult-oriented
establishments, as hereinafter defined, located in the Town of Fairfield,
which establishments require special supervision from the Town's public
safety agencies in order to protect and preserve the health, safety and welfare
of the patrons of such establishments, as well as the health, safety and welfare
of the Town's citizens.
B.Â
Statistics and studies performed by a substantial number
of cities and Towns in the United States indicate that:
(1)Â
Large numbers of persons, primarily male, frequent such
adult-oriented establishments, especially those which provide closed booths,
cubicles, studios and rooms for the private viewing of so-called "adult" motion
pictures and/or videotapes and/or live entertainment; and
(2)Â
Such closed booths, cubicles, studios and rooms have
been used by patrons, clients or customers of such adult-oriented establishments
for the purpose of engaging in certain sexual acts; and
(3)Â
Male and female prostitutes have been known to frequent
such establishments in order to provide sex for hire to the patrons, clients
or customers of such establishments within such booths, cubicles and rooms;
and
(4)Â
Such establishments attract an undesirably large number
of transients as customers, leading to an increase in crime, particularly
prostitution, and an adverse effect particularly on residential neighborhoods;
and
(5)Â
Doors, curtains, blinds and/or other closures installed
in or on the entrances and/or exits of such booths, cubicles, studios and
rooms which are closed while such booths, cubicles, studios and rooms are
in use encourage patrons using such booths, cubicles, studios and rooms to
engage in sexual acts therein with prostitutes and/or with other persons,
thereby promoting and encouraging prostitution and the commission of sexual
acts which cause blood, semen and urine to be deposited on the floors and/or
walls of such booths, cubicles, studios and rooms, which deposits could prove
detrimental to the health and safety of other persons who may come into contact
with such deposits; and
(6)Â
The reasonable regulation and supervision of such adult-oriented
establishments tends to discourage such sexual acts and prostitution, and
thereby promotes the health, safety and welfare of the patrons, clients and
customers of such establishments.
C.Â
The continued unregulated operation of such adult-oriented
establishments is and would be detrimental to the health, safety and welfare
of the citizens of the Town of Fairfield.
D.Â
The Constitution and laws of the State of Connecticut
grant to the Town powers, especially regulatory and police powers, to enact
reasonable legislation and measures to regulate and supervise such adult-oriented
establishments in order to protect the public health, safety and welfare.
E.Â
It is not the intent of the RTM, in enacting this chapter,
to deny to any person rights to speech protected by the United States and/or
state constitutions, nor is it the intent of the RTM to impose any additional
limitations or restrictions on the contents of any communicative materials,
including sexually-oriented films, videotapes, books and/or other materials.
Further, by enacting this chapter, the RTM does not intend to deny or restrict
the rights of any adult to obtain and/or view any sexually-oriented materials
protected by the United States and/or state constitutions, nor does it intend
to restrict or deny any constitutionally-protected rights that distributors
or exhibitors of such sexually-oriented materials may have to sell, distribute
or exhibit such materials.
For the purpose of this chapter, the words and phrases used herein shall
have the following meanings, unless otherwise clearly indicated by the context:
Includes any amusement machine, as defined below, that is regularly
used for presenting material distinguished or characterized by the emphasis
on matter depicting, describing or relating to specified sexual activities
or specified anatomical areas, as defined below, for observation by patrons
therein.
An establishment having a substantial or significant portion of its
stock and trade in books, films, video cassettes or magazines and other periodicals
which are distinguished or characterized by their emphasis on matter depicting,
describing or relating to specified sexual activities or specified anatomical
areas, as defined below.
Any exhibition of any adult-oriented motion pictures, live performance,
display or dance of any type, which has as a significant or substantial portion
of such performance any actual or simulated performance of specified sexual
activities or exhibition and viewing of specified anatomical areas.
An enclosed building with a capacity of less than 50 persons regularly
used for presenting material distinguished or characterized by an emphasis
on matter depicting, describing or relating to specified sexual activities
or specified anatomical areas, as defined below, for observation by patrons
herein.
An enclosed building with a capacity of 50 or more persons regularly
used for presenting material distinguished or characterized by an emphasis
on matter depicting, describing or relating to specified sexual activities
or specified anatomical areas, as defined below, for observation by patrons
therein.
Includes, without limitation, adult bookstores, adult motion-picture
theaters and adult mini motion-picture theaters and further means any premises
to which the public, patrons or members are invited or admitted and which
are so physically arranged as to provide booths, cubicles, rooms, studios,
compartments or stalls separate from the common areas of the premises for
the purposes of viewing adult entertainment, any premises to which the public,
patrons or members are invited or admitted wherein an adult amusement machine
is located, and any premises wherein an entertainer, as defined below, provides
adult entertainment to a member of the public, a patron or a member, when
such adult entertainment is held, conducted, operated or maintained for a
profit, direct or indirect, regardless of how such premises are advertised
or represented, but including, without limitation, adult entertainment studio,
rap studio, exotic dance studio, encounter studio, sensitivity studio, modeling
studio or any other term of like import.
Includes any machine which, upon the payment of a charge or upon
the insertion of a coin, slug, token, plate or disk, may be operated by the
public for use as a game, entertainment or amusement, whether or not registering
a score and whether or not electronically operated, and shall include but
not be limited to such devices as pinball machines, skillball, mechanical
grab machines, any and all air-propelled machines or games, pool tables, shooting
games, any and all video games and all other games and operations similar
thereto under whatever name they may be indicated, including video monitoring
machines.
Any and all persons, including independent contractors, who work
in or at or render any services directly related to the operation of an adult-oriented
establishment.
Any person who engages in the performance of adult entertainment
within an adult-oriented establishment, as defined in this section, whether
or not a fee is charged or accepted for such entertainment and whether or
not such person is an employee or an independent contractor.
An employee of the Public Health Department authorized and designated
by the Director of Health, or the Zoning Enforcement Officer, or an employee
of the Fairfield Building Department or a member of the Fairfield Police Department,
or the Fairfield Fire Marshal, or an agent of any or all of such persons who
is designated to inspect premises regulated under this chapter, and to take
the required actions authorized by this chapter in case of violations being
found on such premises, and to require corrections of unsatisfactory conditions
found on said premises.
[Amended 10-26-1998]
Any person under the age of 18 years.
Any person, partnership or corporation operating, conducting or maintaining
an adult-oriented establishment.
As used in this chapter, is not intended to include any medical publications
or films or bona fide educational publication or films; nor does it include
any art or photography publications which devote at least 25% of the lineage
of each issue to articles and advertisements dealing with subjects of art
or photography; nor does this definition apply to any news periodical which
reports or describes current events and which, from time to time, publishes
photographs of nude or seminude persons in connection with the dissemination
of the news; nor does this definition apply to publications or films which
describe and report different cultures and which, from time to time, publish
or show photographs or depictions of nude or seminude persons when describing
cultures in which nudity or seminudity is indigenous to the population.
A.Â
No operator or employee of an adult-oriented establishment
shall allow or permit any minor to loiter in any part of such establishment,
including parking lots immediately adjacent to such establishment used by
patrons of such adult-oriented establishment.
B.Â
Every adult-oriented establishment doing business in
the Town on and after June 15, 1996, shall be well lighted at all times and
shall be physically arranged in such a manner that the entire interior portion
of the booths, cubicles, rooms or stalls wherein adult entertainment is provided
shall be clearly visible from the common areas of the premises. Visibility
into such booths, cubicles, rooms or stalls shall not be blocked or obscured
by doors, curtains, partitions, drapes or any other obstruction whatsoever.
It shall be unlawful to install enclosed booths, cubicles, rooms or stalls
within adult-oriented establishments for the purpose of providing for adult
entertainment.
C.Â
On and after June 15, 1996, the operator of each adult-oriented
establishment shall be responsible for and shall provide that any room or
other area used for the purpose of viewing adult-oriented pictures or other
types of adult entertainment shall be well lighted and readily accessible
at all times and shall be continuously open to view in its entirety. The premises
shall be equipped with overhead lighting fixtures of sufficient intensity
to illuminate every place to which patrons are permitted access at an illumination
of not less than one footcandle as measured at the floor level. It shall be
the duty of the operator and its agents to ensure that the illumination described
above is maintained at all times that any patron is present in the premises.
D.Â
Every act or omission committed by an employee constituting
a violation of the provisions of this chapter shall be deemed the act or omission
of the operator if such act or omission occurs either with the authorization,
knowledge or approval of the operator, or as a result of the operator's
negligent failure to supervise the employee's conduct, and the operator
shall be subject to penalties for such act or omission in the same manner
as if the operator had committed the act or caused the omission.
E.Â
All adult-oriented establishments shall be open to inspection
at all reasonable times by the Fairfield Police Department, inspectors employed
by the Town or such other persons as the RTM may designate.
F.Â
No adult-oriented establishment shall be permitted on
a site that is less than 500 feet from an area zoned residential.
G.Â
No adult-oriented establishment shall be
permitted on a site that is less than 500 feet from any preexisting residential
dwelling, public or private school, place of worship, public library or public
park.
H.Â
No adult-oriented establishment shall be permitted on
a site that is less than 1,000 feet from an existing adult-oriented establishment.
A.Â
Any person, partnership or corporation who is found to
have violated this chapter shall be fined a definite sum not exceeding $100
for each such violation.
B.Â
Each violation of this chapter shall be considered a
separate offense, and any violation continuing more than one hour of time
shall be considered a separate offense for each hour of violation.
C.Â
Nothing contained in this section shall be deemed to
limit any remedy the Town may have for the enforcement of this chapter.
