Chapter 5.3
BILLIARD ROOMS
Sections:
5.3.03 Permit application: Fee.
5.3.04 Permit: Issuance or denial.
5.3.05 Permit: Renewal: Change of location: Fees.
5.3.06 Permit: Suspension and revocation.
5.3.07 Permits: Revocation: Renewal.
5.3.08 Permits: Transfer and assignment.
5.3.09 Permits and regulations: Posting.
5.3.11.1 Minors allowed: Family billiard rooms.
5.3.13 Construction and sanitation.
5.3.14 Supplemental regulations.
5.3.15 Exemptions from provisions.
5.3.16 Violations of provisions.
5.3.01 Definitions.
For the purposes of this chapter, certain words and phrases used herein are defined as follows:
(a) “Billiards” shall mean any of the several games played on a table surrounded by an elastic ledge or cushions with balls which are impelled by cues and shall include all forms of a game known as pool.
(b) “Billiard room” shall mean any public place wherein the game of billiards is permitted to be played and shall include any place where a fee is charged which is directly or indirectly conditioned upon, or related to, the playing of the game of billiards. (§ 1, Ord. 343)
5.3.02 Permit required.
No person shall conduct, manage, operate, or maintain a billiard room in the City without having first obtained a permit from the City to do so in the manner provided in this chapter. (§ 9, Ord. 343)
5.3.03 Permit application: Fee.
Any person desiring to obtain the permit required by Section 5.3.02 of this chapter shall file a verified application therefor with the Chief of Police. Such application shall set forth the following information:
(a) The name, age, and residence address of the applicant if a natural person; or,
(b) If a corporation, its name, date, and place of incorporation, the address of its principal place of business, and the names of all its officers, together with their respective addresses; or,
(c) If a partnership, association, or unincorporated company, the names of the partners or persons comprising the association, together with their respective addresses;
(d) The name, age, and residence address of the person who is to manage the billiard room, if other than the applicant;
(e) The address at which the billiard room is to be conducted; and
(f) A statement as to whether or not an application for a similar permit has been refused or cancelled by any other municipality in the State and, if so, a full statement of the reasons therefor.
At the time of filing such an application, the applicant, or person making the application upon behalf of any firm or corporation, and the person who is to manage the billiard room, if other than the applicant, shall be photographed and fingerprinted, and such photographs and fingerprints shall be made a part of the application.
The application shall be accompanied by a fee in the amount of Ten and no/100ths ($10.00) Dollars to defray the expense of acting upon such application. Such fee shall be in addition to any permit or license fee which may be required to be paid. (§ 11, Ord. 343)
5.3.04 Permit: Issuance or denial.
The application for a permit shall be made to the Chief of Police. Upon receipt of an application the Chief of Police shall cause an investigation to be made. After such investigation and within twenty-five (25) days after the filing of an application for a permit, the Chief of Police shall issue the permit unless he or she finds any of the following:
(a) That the provision of this chapter pertaining to the billiard room will not be met;
(b) That any of the grounds for suspension or revocation of a permit exist; or
(c) That the operation of the billiard room may create a public nuisance or disorder in the neighborhood.
No permit shall be issued until the required application and permit fee have been paid to the City of Clovis.
Any applicant aggrieved by the denial of a permit may appeal to the Council by filing a written notice thereof with the City Clerk within five (5) days from the date of notice of such action. The decision of the Council, after a hearing on appeal, shall be final.
Such permit, if issued, shall be for a term of one year from and after the date of issuance. (§ 12, Ord. 343, as amended by § 1, Ord. 03-6, eff. April 9, 2003)
5.3.05 Permit: Renewal: Change of location: Fees.
Any permit issued pursuant to the provisions of this chapter may be renewed from year to year upon application. Such application shall be made in the same manner as for an original application and shall be made within thirty (30) days after the date of expiration of such permit or the last renewal thereof, and, if not so made, the permit shall be null and void and not renewable. A fee in the amount of Five and no/100ths ($5.00) Dollars shall be charged for any application for a change of location of the billiard room for which a permit has been granted. An annual permit fee in the amount of Fifteen and no/100ths ($15.00) Dollars shall be paid before any permit shall be issued pursuant to the provisions of this chapter. (§ 13, Ord. 343)
5.3.06 Permit: Suspension and revocation.
(a) Cause. Any permit granted pursuant to the provisions of this chapter may be suspended or revoked by the Chief of Police when it shall appear that the billiard room for which the permit was granted is being conducted in a disorderly or improper manner, or in violation of any statute of the State or law of the City or regulation adopted pursuant to the provisions of Section 5.3.14 of this chapter, or that the person conducting the billiard room is of an unfit character to conduct the same, or that the purpose for which the permit was issued is being used to the detriment of the public or for a purpose wholly foreign to that for which the permit was issued.
(b) Suspension: Hearing. The Chief of Police, within five (5) days after such suspension, shall make a report to the Council which shall hold a hearing on such suspension at its first regular meeting alter receipt of the report of the Chief of Police.
(c) Appeals. Such suspension shall become final fifteen (15) days after the action by the Chief of Police in suspending such permit unless the permittee, within such fifteen (15) day period, shall apply to the Council for a hearing. In the event the permittee shall apply to the Council for a hearing, the permit shall remain suspended until such hearing which shall be held by the Council at its next regular meeting occurring not less than ten (10) days after such appeal. Notice of the hearing on the appeal shall be mailed to the permittee at such address as he shall set forth upon the appeal at least five (5) days before the date of the hearing. The Council at such hearing shall revoke the permit or take any other action it shall deem fit and proper in the premises. (§ 14, Ord. 343)
5.3.07 Permits: Revocation: Renewal.
Whenever a permit shall have been revoked pursuant to the provisions of Section 5.3.06 of this chapter, no application by the person whose permit has been revoked shall be considered by the Chief of Police for a period of one year. (§ 15, Ord. 343)
5.3.08 Permits: Transfer and assignment.
No permit granted or issued pursuant to the provisions of this chapter shall be in any manner transferred or assigned, nor shall it authorize any person, other than is therein mentioned or named, to carry on the billiard room for which the permit was granted. (§ 16, Ord. 343)
5.3.09 Permits and regulations: Posting.
The permit required by the provisions of this chapter and a copy of the provisions of this chapter shall be posted and maintained in a conspicuous place on the premises where any billiard room is located. (§§ 2 and 10, Ord. 343)
5.3.10 Hours of operation.
No person shall operate a billiard room between the hours of 2:00 a.m and 6:00 a.m. or permit or allow any person to remain in any billiard room between the hours of 2:00 a.m. and 6:00 a.m. The provisions of this section, however, shall not be construed to prevent regular employees from performing necessary work within the premises. (§ 3, Ord. 343)
5.3.11 Attendance by minors.
(a) No person under the age of eighteen (18) years shall be in, remain in, enter, or visit any billiard room unless accompanied by his parent or guardian.
(b) No person having charge or control of any billiard room shall permit or allow any such person under the age of eighteen (18) years to be in, remain in, enter, or visit any billiard room unless such minor person is accompanied by his parent or guardian.
(c) No person shall represent himself to have reached the age of eighteen (18) years in order to obtain admission to any billiard room or to be permitted to remain therein when such person in fact is under eighteen (18) years of age. (§ 4, Ord. 343)
5.3.11.1 Minors allowed: Family billiard rooms.
The provisions of Section 5.3.11 of this chapter shall not apply to a family billiard room, subject to each and all of the following conditions:
(a) The applicant for a permit, or a permittee, shall apply in writing to the Chief of Police for permission to allow minors in such billiard room and shall agree to comply with the following additional rules and regulations applicable to such billiard room:
(1) No alcoholic beverages of any kind shall be sold, consumed, or possessed by any person on the premises of the billiard room or on any other premises having access (other than by means of a public street) to the premises of the billiard room.
(2) No gambling, betting, or wagering of any kind shall be suffered, allowed, or permitted on the premises of the billiard room.
(3) No profanity of any kind shall be used, suffered, allowed, or permitted on the premises of the billiard room.
(4) The curfew hours for minors shall be strictly observed and enforced on the premises of the billiard room.
(5) The owners, managers, and operators, and each of them, of the billiard room shall be strictly responsible for the enforcement of all rules and regulations, and shall not permit any person violating any rule or regulation to remain in such billiard room, and shall not permit any habitual violator to enter such billiard room.
(6) At least four (4) signs shall be posted and maintained at conspicuous places in and about the billiard room, printed in bold one-inch high letters placed on a contrasting background, and setting forth the substance of the rules and regulations in this section.
(b) The Chief of Police, after investigation, and after determining that the premises of the billiard room are suitable for minors, may endorse the permit issued under this chapter as follows: “Minors allowed, subject to Clovis Municipal Code, Section 5.3.11.1"; and thereafter the provisions of Section 5.3.11 of this chapter shall not apply to the billiard room described in such permit.
(c) Whenever a permit has been endorsed as provided in subsection (b) of this section, the permit may be suspended or revoked for the violation of the rules and regulations set forth in subsection (a) of this section in accordance with the provisions of Section 5.3.06 of this chapter. (§ 1, Ord. 435, eff. January 3, 1968)
5.3.12 Games of chance.
No owner, proprietor, manager, or employee of any billiard room shall permit the use of a pea-ball or dice or the playing of games of chance in such billiard room, or give any checks or tokens which may be redeemed for merchandise or cash. (§ 5, Ord. 343)
5.3.13 Construction and sanitation.
All billiard rooms shall be so constructed and maintained that a clear and unobstructed view of the entire interior thereof may at all times be had from any entrance to such rooms. No partitions forming rooms, stalls, or other enclosures where the public congregates shall be permitted. The provisions of this section, however, shall not be construed to include the maintenance of washrooms or toilet rooms for proper purposes or the maintenance of closets for storage purposes exclusively. All billiard rooms shall be kept at all times in a clean, healthful, and sanitary condition. (§ 6, Ord. 343)
5.3.14 Supplemental regulations.
The Chief of Police shall prescribe such additional regulations not inconsistent with the provisions of this chapter as are deemed necessary by him in the public interest to prevent the operation of billiard rooms from adversely affecting the public peace, health, safety, or morals. Such regulations shall be approved by the Council before becoming effective. A copy of such regulations shall be furnished to every person holding a permit to conduct a billiard room. (§ 7, Ord. 343)
5.3.15 Exemptions from provisions.
The provisions of this chapter shall not apply to any institution or organization which is conducted, managed, or carried on wholly for the benefit of charitable purposes or from which profit is not derived, either directly or indirectly, by any individual, firm, or corporation. (§ 8, Ord. 343)
5.3.16 Violations of provisions.
Any person violating any provision of this chapter or operating a billiard room within the City without first securing a permit shall be guilty of a misdemeanor. (§ 17, Ord. 343)