City of Hagerstown, MD Chapter 92 Entertainment Clubs

[HISTORY: Adopted by the Mayor and Council of the City of Hagerstown 1-16-2001 by Ord. No. 2001-1[1]. Amendments noted where applicable.]

GENERAL REFERENCES

Adult businesses — See Ch. 46.

Bottle clubs — See Ch. 62.

Curfew for minors — See Ch. 79.

Land management — See Ch. 140.

Loitering — See Ch. 142.

Noise — See Ch. 155.

Peace and good order — See Ch. 173.

Pool halls and billiard rooms — See Ch. 181.

[1] Editor's Note: This ordinance was originally designated as Ch. 31, but was included as Ch. 92 to maintain the organizational sequence of the Code.

§ 92-1 Definitions.

As used in this chapter, the following terms shall have the following meanings, unless the context clearly indicates that a different meaning is intended:

CITY

City of Hagerstown, Maryland.

CLUB PREMISES

Any place where an entertainment club is operated or maintained, including all hallways, bathrooms, parking areas and other adjacent portions of the premises which are accessible to the public during operating hours.

ENTERTAINMENT CLUB

[Amended 8-25-2009 by Ord. No. O-09-11]

A. Commercial premises which are open to the public, the primary function of which is to offer patrons an opportunity to engage in social activities such as dancing, or the enjoyment of live or prerecorded music, or the enjoyment of entertainment provided by dancers or other performers. As an incidental function, an entertainment club may sell and serve food and beverages to its patrons.

B. The term "entertainment club" does not include the following: premises which are licensed to serve alcoholic beverages pursuant to state law; theaters where the patrons sit in parallel rows of fixed seats; full-service restaurants where the only entertainment is incidental to the primary function of serving food; outdoor performances; a banquet, party or celebration conducted for invited guests which is not open to the general public; events sponsored and operated by a governmental entity, an educational institution, a nonprofit religious, charitable, benevolent, fraternal, or social organization, or a homeowner's association.

OVER-TWENTY-ONE CLUB

Any entertainment club which restricts its admission to persons age 21 years and over.

PERSON

One or more natural persons, corporations, partnerships, associations, or other entities capable of having an action at law brought against such entity.

TEEN CLUB

Any entertainment club which restricts its admission to persons under the age of 21 years of age.

§ 92-2 License required; existing clubs.

A. It is unlawful for any person to own, lease, operate, manage or maintain an entertainment club in the City without first obtaining an entertainment club license from the City. For multiuse facilities which include an entertainment club, a separate and additional license must be issued for the entertainment club operation.

B. Entertainment clubs currently in existence and actually operating as of the effective date of this chapter shall be required to comply with the provisions of this chapter immediately upon the first anniversary of the effective date of this chapter.

§ 92-3 Application for license; fee.

In addition to the application procedures referred to in § 92-4 of this chapter, an applicant for an entertainment club license shall provide the following:

A. A written statement identifying the club premises, and setting forth measures proposed to ensure that adequate traffic control, crowd protection and security, both inside and outside the premises, will be maintained, and that the ages of patrons admitted to the entertainment club will be monitored.

B. A statement electing whether the entertainment club will be operated either exclusively as a teen club or exclusively as an over-twenty-one club, and a statement of the proposed schedule of operating hours and days.

C. Proof of insurance, including liability insurance in the amount of $1,000,000 and workers' compensation insurance in a commercially reasonable amount.

D. Proof of issuance of all trader's, business, food service, sales tax, and any other applicable required state, county or local licenses.

E. Proof of the occupancy limits of the club premises as determined by the City Fire Marshal.

F. A nonrefundable annual license fee of $500.

§ 92-4 Issuance or denial of license.

After receiving a complete application for an entertainment club license at the office of the City Clerk, 1 East Franklin Street, Second Floor, Hagerstown, Maryland, as specified in § 92-3 above, the City shall follow the following procedures:

A. The City Clerk shall forward copies of the application to appropriate City officials for their comments regarding compliance with regulations under their jurisdiction. The City Clerk shall consider all materials and comments submitted and shall issue or deny the license within 30 days after the date on which a completed application was filed unless the applicant agrees to an extension of the time period in writing. A license shall be issued for a one-year period.

B. An entertainment club license shall be denied by the City Clerk for any one or more of the following grounds:

(1) If the operation of the business on the premises does not comply with all applicable City ordinances, Zoning Codes, and state laws;

(2) If the application is incomplete or if it contains any material misrepresentation; or

(3) If the application does not provide for adequate measures for the protection of the public health, safety and welfare in terms of traffic control, crowd protection and security, both inside and outside the premises, and the monitoring of the ages of patrons admitted to the entertainment club.

C. If the City Clerk denies a license, written notice of the denial stating the reasons why shall be sent to the applicant.

§ 92-5 Operating rules and regulations.

The following operating rules and regulations shall apply to all entertainment clubs in the City:

A. The entertainment club shall be operated in accordance with all federal, state and local laws.

B. Persons of the following ages shall not be permitted to enter or remain on the premises of a teen club:

(1) Under the age of 16 years unless accompanied by a parent or legal guardian.

(2) 21 years of age or older except for bona fide employees or entertainers hired by the licensee to work in the club, or a parent or guardian of a person under 21 years of age present in the club.

C. No person under the age of 21 years shall be permitted to enter or remain on the premises of an over-twenty-one club unless accompanied by a parent or legal guardian, except for entertainers or employees hired by the licensee to work in the club, who shall he at least 18 years of age.

D. Teen clubs shall be operated only on Friday and Saturday nights, and shall close at 1:00 a.m.

E. Over-twenty-one clubs may operate any night of the week and shall close at 1:30 a.m.

F. It shall be the obligation of the licensee to employ an adequate number of qualified security personnel who will be present on club premises during all operating hours to maintain peace and order and to ensure compliance with all applicable laws of the state and of the City.

G. It shall be the obligation of the licensee to ensure that no alcoholic beverages or controlled substances are offered for sale or consumed on the entertainment club premises.

H. It shall be the obligation of the licensee to remove from the club premises any person who is, or appears to be, under the influence of, or affected by the use of, alcohol or drugs, or whose conduct poses a physical danger to the safety of others present.

I. It shall be the obligation of the licensee to prevent loitering, the creation of public nuisances or disturbances of the peace by patrons of the entertainment club on club premises or in the immediate vicinity. "Loitering" shall not include walking between the club building and a patron's vehicle, nor shall it include the act of waiting in line to gain admission to the club.

J. It shall be the obligation of the licensee to ensure that no noise emanates from the club premises in violation of the City Noise Ordinance (Chapter 155). Noise that is plainly audible at a distance of 50 feet from the premises shall be prohibited.

K. It shall be the obligation of the licensee to ensure that no signs or flyers advertising the licensee or any event of the licensee are posted on any utility poles, or in any other way in violation of City ordinances. Licensee shall be responsible for the immediate removal of any such signs or flyers which advertise licensee's business.

L. It shall be the obligation of the licensee to clean up all litter on or around the club premises resulting from club operations. The cleanup shall occur within eight hours after the end of each day's operation and shall extend to the immediate vicinity of the club.

M. No entertainment club shall be operated within 500 feet of a school or recognized place of worship.

§ 92-6 Access by officers.

Any City police officers or Fire Department personnel, presently on duty, shall have free access to all entertainment clubs for the purpose of inspection and to enforce compliance with the provisions of this chapter at all times that the premises are open to the patrons.

§ 92-7 Checking age of patrons.

A. It is the responsibility of the licensee to require picture identification or a reasonable equivalent showing the age of each person admitted to an entertainment club. It is unlawful for any person to knowingly, recklessly, or negligently allow a person to enter or remain on the premises of an entertainment club in violation of the age restrictions of this chapter.

B. It is unlawful for any person to misrepresent his or her age for the purpose of obtaining admission to, or remaining at, an entertainment club in violation of the provisions of this chapter.

§ 92-8 Suspension or revocation of license.

A. Suspension.

(1) A Review Board consisting of the City Administrator, Police Chief and Planning Department Head may, at any time, suspend an entertainment club license whenever the licensee, or any manager, officer, director, agent, or employee of the licensee, has caused, permitted or knowingly done any of the following:

(a) Failed to keep the building structure or equipment on the licensed premises in compliance with the applicable health, building, fire or safety laws, regulations or ordinances in a way which relates to or affects public health or safety on the entertainment club premises;

(b) Failed to comply with the written statement provided pursuant to § 92-3 hereof with respect to taking measures to ensure adequate traffic control, crowd protection and security, and such failure has caused an immediate public safety concern; or

(c) Failed to comply with the operating rules and regulations of entertainment clubs specified in § 92-5 of this chapter.

(2) Such suspension shall remain in effect until the conditions causing the suspension are cured and reasonable measures are taken to ensure that the same will not recur, as determined by the Review Board.

B. The Review Board may, at any time, revoke an entertainment club license on any one or more of the following grounds:

(1) Whenever the City learns that the licensee made a material false statement or misrepresentation, or failed to disclose any material information to the City, in connection with any application for entertainment club license or any license renewal;

(2) Whenever the licensee or any manager, officer, director, agent or employee of the licensee fails within a reasonable time to cure a condition that caused a license suspension; or

(3) Whenever the licensee or any manager, officer, director, agent or employee of the licensee knowingly permits conduct on the licensed premises that violates any federal, state, county or City criminal statute, law or ordinance.

§ 92-9 Severability.

The provisions of this chapter are severable. If any provision of this chapter or its application to any person or circumstances is held invalid, such invalidity shall not affect other provisions or applications of this chapter which can be given effect without the invalid provisions or application.

§ 92-10 Declaration of nuisance; injunction.

Any violation of this chapter is declared to be a nuisance. In addition to any other relief provided by this chapter, the City Attorney may apply to a court of competent jurisdiction for an injunction to prohibit the continuation of any violation of this chapter. The application for relief may include seeking a temporary restraining order, temporary injunction and permanent injunction.

§ 92-11 Violations and penalties.

In addition to the sanctions outlined in §§ 92-8 and 92-10, any person, firm or corporation violating any provision of this chapter shall be fined not more than $1,000 for each offense, and a separate offense shall be deemed committed on each day during or on which a violation occurs or continues. A violation of this chapter shall be considered a municipal infraction.