Chapter 5.25
ADULT BUSINESSES1
Sections:
5.25.030 Adult business license required.
5.25.040 Adult business license – Application – Requirements.
5.25.050 Adult business license – Revocation.
5.25.060 Adult business manager or entertainer – License application – Requirements.
5.25.070 Adult business manager’s or entertainer’s license – Revocation.
5.25.100 Activities not restricted.
5.25.110 Adult business – Regulations applicable.
5.25.130 Appeal of denial or revocation of license.
5.25.010 Provisions.
The provisions of this chapter shall be deemed an exercise of the police power of the town of La Conner, Washington, for the protection of the public, economic and social welfare, health, peace and morals, and all of its provisions shall be liberally construed for the accomplishment of that purpose. [Ord. 1250 § 2, 2024.]
5.25.020 Definitions.
In construing this chapter, except when otherwise plainly declared or clearly apparent from context, the following definitions shall be applied:
(1) “Adult entertainment” means any exhibition, performance, or dance of any type conducted in a premises where such exhibition, performance, or dance involves an entertainer who:
(a) Is unclothed or in such attire, costume, or clothing as to expose to view any portion of the breast below the top of the areola or any portion of the pubic region, anus, buttocks, vulva, or genitals; or
(b) Touches, caresses, or fondles the breasts, buttocks, anus, genitals, or pubic region of another person, or permits the touching, caressing, or fondling of the entertainer’s own breasts, buttocks, anus, genitals, or pubic region by another person, with the intent to sexually arouse or excite another person.
(2) “Adult business” means any business to which the public, patrons, or members are invited or admitted where an entertainer provides adult entertainment to a member of the public, a patron, or a member.
(3) “Manager” means any person who manages, directs, or administers the affairs or conduct of a portion of the activity within an adult business, including assistant managers working with or under the direction of a manager to carry out such purposes.
(4) “Entertainer” means any person who provides live adult entertainment in an adult business, whether or not the person is an employee of the adult business, and whether or not a fee is charged or accepted for such entertainment.
(5) All definitions as applied in LCMC 5.05.020 shall be applied to this chapter. [Ord. 1250 § 2, 2024; Ord. 1231 § 2, 2023]
5.25.030 Adult business license required.
(1) No public place of adult business shall be operated or maintained in the town, unless the owner or operator thereof has obtained a license from the town clerk as hereinafter set forth; provided, that it is unlawful for any entertainer, employee or operator to knowingly work in or about, or to knowingly perform any service directly related to the operation of an unlicensed adult business.
(2) It is unlawful for any person to work as a manager in an adult business unless that person is the holder of a valid manager’s license issued by the town clerk under this chapter.
(3) It is unlawful for any person to work or perform as an entertainer in an adult business unless that person is the holder of a valid entertainer’s license issued by the town clerk under this chapter. [Ord. 1250 § 2, 2024.]
5.25.040 Adult business license – Application – Requirements.
(1) Applications for an adult business shall be submitted in the name of the person or entity proposing to conduct such activity on the business premises and shall be signed by such person or their agent and notarized or certified as true under penalty of perjury, all applications shall be submitted on a form supplied by the town clerk, which shall require the following information:
(a) If the applicant is an individual:
(i) The date of the application;
(ii) Name of the applicant;
(iii) Phone number of the applicant;
(iv) Mailing address of the applicant;
(v) Date and place of birth of the applicant;
(vi) Social Security number of the applicant;
(vii) Proof that the applicant has completed training as required by RCW 49.17.470;
(viii) Documentation that the applicant has attained the age of 18 years. Any of the following shall be accepted as documentation of age:
(A) A valid driver’s license issued by any state bearing the applicant’s photograph and date of birth;
(B) A valid identification card issued by any state bearing the applicant’s photograph and date of birth;
(C) An official passport issued by the United States of America;
(D) An immigration card issued by the United States of America; or
(E) Any other form of identification that the town clerk determines to be acceptable.
(ix) The proposed location of the adult business, including a street address, tax parcel number, and a legal description of the property;
(x) A diagram showing the configuration of the interior of the adult business, including the amount of total floor space to be occupied by the adult business. The diagram shall be drawn to a designated scale to an accuracy of plus or minus six inches;
(xi) A description of the principal activities and services to be offered by the proposed adult business, including a summary of the types of adult entertainment and sexually oriented materials to be offered for sale or rent by the proposed adult business;
(xii) Authorization for the town, its agents, and employees to seek information to confirm any statements or other information set forth in the application.
(b) If the applicant is an artificial entity then the following must be provided for partners, corporate officers or any shareholder who collectively owns 51 percent or more of the business:
(i) Name;
(ii) Home address;
(iii) Phone number;
(iv) Mailing address;
(v) Social Security number;
(vi) Date and place of birth;
(vii) Date of the application;
(viii) Proof that training as required by RCW 49.17.470 has been completed;
(ix) Documentation that the partner, corporate officer, or shareholder has attained the age of 18 years. Any of the following shall be accepted as documentation of age:
(A) A valid driver’s license issued by any state bearing the applicant’s photograph and date of birth;
(B) A valid identification card issued by any state bearing the applicant’s photograph and date of birth;
(C) An official passport issued by the United States of America;
(D) An immigration card issued by the United States of America; or
(E) Any other form of identification that the town clerk determines to be acceptable.
(x) The proposed location of the adult business, including a street address, tax parcel number, and a legal description of the property;
(xi) A diagram showing the configuration of the interior of the adult business, including the amount of total floor space to be occupied by the adult business. The diagram shall be drawn to a designated scale to an accuracy of plus or minus six inches;
(xii) A description of the principal activities and services to be offered by the proposed adult business, including a summary of the types of adult entertainment and sexually oriented materials to be offered for sale or rent by the proposed adult business;
(xiii) Authorization for the town, its agents, and employees to seek information to confirm any statements or other information set forth in the application.
(2) Each person qualifying as an owner or operator of the proposed adult entertainment facility shall submit a separate application. Each applicant shall be separately qualified under this chapter.
(3) If any person or entity acquires, subsequent to the issuance of an adult business license, an ownership interest in the licensed adult business, notice of such acquisition shall be provided in writing to the town clerk within 21 calendar days following such acquisition and the person acquiring the interest shall submit a complete application to the town clerk pursuant to this section within 45 calendar days of acquiring such interest.
(4) An application shall be deemed complete upon receipt of all the information and documents requested under this section. Where necessary to determine compliance with this chapter, the town clerk may request information or clarification in addition to that provided in a complete application.
(5) Each adult business license shall be accompanied by a nonrefundable fee set by the town council.
(6) No person or entity granted an adult business license pursuant to this chapter shall operate the adult business under a name not specified on the license, nor shall any person operate an adult business under any designation or at any location not specified on the license. [Ord. 1250 § 2, 2024.]
5.25.050 Adult business license – Revocation.
(1) The town may, subject to this chapter, revoke any license issued pursuant to this chapter.
(2) Upon receipt of notice of the revocation of an adult business license, the licensee shall without delay deliver such license to the town clerk.
(3) The town shall revoke a license if the town determines that:
(a) The licensee has given false information in the material submitted during the application process; or
(b) The licensee has violated any applicable requirement of this chapter. [Ord. 1250 § 2, 2024.]
5.25.060 Adult business manager or entertainer – License application – Requirements.
(1) No person shall work or perform work as a manager or entertainer at an adult business without a valid manager’s or entertainer’s license. All applications for a manager’s or entertainer’s license shall be signed by the applicant and notarized or certified to be true under penalty of perjury. At the time of application, a picture shall be taken of the applicant by the town clerk. All applications shall be submitted on a form supplied by the town clerk, which shall require the following information:
(a) The date of the application;
(b) The name of the applicant;
(c) The home address of the applicant;
(d) Phone number of the applicant;
(e) Mailing address of the applicant;
(f) Date and place of birth;
(g) Stage name or nicknames used in entertainment, if applicable;
(h) Social Security number of the applicant;
(i) Documentation that the applicant has attained the age of 18 years. Any of the following shall be accepted as documentation of age:
(i) A valid driver’s license issued by any state bearing the applicant’s photograph and date of birth;
(ii) A valid identification card issued by any state bearing the applicant’s photograph and date of birth;
(iii) An official passport issued by the United States of America;
(iv) An immigration card issued by the United States of America; or
(v) Any other form of identification that the town clerk determines to be acceptable;
(j) Proof that the applicant has completed training as required by RCW 49.17.470;
(k) Authorization for the town, its agents, and employees to seek information to confirm any statements or other information set forth in the application.
(2) A person shall be permitted to hold both an adult business manager’s license and an adult business entertainer’s license, provided they are only working in one capacity per work shift.
(3) The clerk shall deny the application to:
(a) Any applicant under 18 years of age;
(b) Any applicant who is overdue on his/her payment to the town of taxes, fees, fines, or penalties assessed against him/her or imposed upon him/her in relation to an adult entertainment business;
(c) Any applicant whose place of business is conducted by an agent, unless such agent possesses the same qualifications required of the licensee, or in the case of a manager of an adult entertainment business, the manager has obtained a manager’s license;
(d) A partnership, unless all the members thereof are qualified to obtain a license as provided in this chapter. Such license shall be issued to the agent of said partnership;
(e) A corporation, unless all the officers and directors thereof are qualified to obtain a license as provided herein. Such license shall be issued to the agent of said corporation;
(f) Any applicant who has failed to provide information required on a license application for the issuance of the license or has made, with the intent to mislead, a materially false representation in the application for a license under this chapter which the applicant knows to be false; or
(g) Any applicant who has failed to comply with any provision or requirement of this chapter. [Ord. 1250 § 2, 2024.]
5.25.070 Adult business manager’s or entertainer’s license – Revocation.
(1) The town may, subject to this chapter, revoke any manager’s or entertainer’s license issued pursuant to this chapter.
(2) Upon receipt of notice of the revocation of an adult business manager’s or entertainer’s license, the licensee shall without delay deliver such license to the town clerk.
(3) The town shall revoke a license if the town determines that:
(a) The licensee has given false information in the material submitted during the application process;
(b) The licensee has violated any applicable requirement of this chapter; or
(c) The licensee has knowingly allowed violations of this chapter to occur. [Ord. 1250 § 2, 2024.]
5.25.080 Manager on premises.
A licensed manager shall be on the premises of an adult business at all times that adult entertainment is being provided. The licensed manager shall not permit any violations of this chapter to occur. [Ord. 1250 § 2, 2024.]
5.25.090 Moral nuisance.
Any adult entertainment facility operated, conducted, or maintained contrary to the provisions of Chapter 7.48A RCW shall be deemed a moral nuisance, and all remedies given by law for the prevention and abatement of moral nuisances shall apply regardless of any other remedy. [Ord. 1250 § 2, 2024.]
5.25.100 Activities not restricted.
(1) This chapter shall not be construed to restrict or prohibit the following activities or products:
(a) Plays, operas, musicals or other dramatic works that are not obscene;
(b) Classes, seminars, or lectures which are held for a serious scientific or educational purpose and that are not obscene; and
(c) Exhibitions, performances, expressions or dances that are not obscene.
(2) The provisions of this chapter are not intended to and do not prohibit the simulation of sexual acts which are part of nonobscene expression.
(3) Whether or not activity is obscene shall be judged by consideration of the following factors:
(a) Whether the average person, applying contemporary community standards, would find that the activity taken as a whole appeals to the prurient interest in sex; and
(b) Whether the activity depicts or describes sexual conduct in a patently offensive way, as measured against community standards, and as described in RCW 7.48A.010(2)(b); and
(c) Whether the activity taken as a whole lacks serious literary, artistic, political or scientific value. [Ord. 1250 § 2, 2024.]
5.25.110 Adult business – Regulations applicable.
(1) Admission to any adult business under this chapter shall be restricted to persons 18 years of age or older. The age of all patrons shall be verified at the time of entry by an employee of the adult business.
(2) No employee or entertainer shall perform any act which constitutes a violation of Chapter 7.48A RCW.
(3) No employee or entertainer shall wear or use any device, costume, attire, clothing, or covering exposed to view which simulates the breast of a female below the top of the areola, vulva or genitals, anus, and/or buttocks, or any portion of the pubic hair except upon a stage at least 18 inches above the immediate floor level and removed at least six feet from the nearest patron.
(4) No employee or entertainer mingling with members of the public shall conduct any dance, performance or exhibition in or about the nonstage area of the live adult entertainment establishment unless that dance, performance or exhibition is performed at a distance of no less than four feet from any member of the public.
(5) No entertainer shall allow a member of the public to place a tip or gratuity directly upon the entertainer’s clothing or body.
(6) A minimum lighting level of 30 lux semicylindrical measured at 30 inches from the floor or 10-foot centers shall be provided and equally distributed in and about the public portions of the adult business, including the patron seating areas, so that all objects are plainly visible at all times.
(7) No activity or entertainment occurring at or in the adult business, nor any photograph, drawing, sketch or other pictorial or graphic representation of any specified sexual activities or specified anatomical areas shall be visible at any time from outside the adult business.
(8) A sign at least two feet by two feet, with letters at least one inch high, shall be conspicuously and permanently posted at or near the entrance to the adult business which states the following:
THIS ADULT BUSINESS IS REGULATED BY THE TOWN OF LA CONNER. ENTERTAINERS ARE NOT PERMITTED TO ENGAGE IN ANY TYPE OF SEXUAL ACTIVITY AND ARE NOT PERMITTED TO APPEAR NUDE EXCEPT ON STAGE. ENTERTAINERS ARE NOT ALLOWED TO DANCE WITHIN FOUR FEET OF ANY CUSTOMER. TIPS AND GRATUITIES MAY NOT BE PLACED ON THE BODY OR IN THE CLOTHING OF ANY ENTERTAINER.
(9) Any advertisement or signage placed by the adult business shall, in addition to the regulations imposed by Chapter 15.115 LCMC, not be obscene as judged by consideration of the following factors:
(a) Whether the average person, applying contemporary community standards, would find that the signage taken as a whole appeals to the prurient interest in sex.
(10) It shall be unlawful for any adult business to be operated or otherwise open to the public between the hours of 2:00 a.m. and 10:00 a.m.
(11) An individual may not possess, consume or serve an alcoholic beverage in the adult business unless, and to the extent, the business is covered by a liquor license issued by the Washington State Liquor and Cannabis Board. [Ord. 1250 § 2, 2024.]
5.25.120 Inspections allowed.
(1) An applicant or licensee shall permit representatives of the police department, health department, and other state and local government agencies to inspect the premises of the adult business, at any time the adult business is open for business, for the purpose of ensuring compliance with all applicable statutes, codes, ordinances, regulations, and laws.
(2) Where a condition exists upon the premises of an adult business that constitutes a threat of immediate serious injury to public health or safety (such as, but not limited to, immediate, potential loss of life or limb) any other town official may immediately revoke any license issued under this chapter by issuing a notice setting forth the facts that constitute a threat of immediate serious injury to public health or safety and informing the licensee of the right to appeal the suspension to the town hearing examiner under the appeal provisions set forth in this chapter. [Ord. 1250 § 2, 2024.]
5.25.130 Appeal of denial or revocation of license.
(1) In the event the town denies or revokes a license issued under this chapter, the town clerk shall notify the applicant or licensee in writing of the decision at least 10 calendar days prior to the effective date of any such denial or revocation. The notice shall describe the grounds for such denial or revocation and shall inform the applicant or licensee of their right to appeal of the town hearing examiner within 10 calendar days of the date of the written decision by filing a written notice of appeal with the town clerk containing a statement of the specific reasons for the appeal and a statement of the relief requested. The notice shall be served either in person or by mailing a copy of the notice by certified mail, postage prepaid, return receipt requested, to the applicant or licensee at their last known address. Service by certified mail in the manner described in this section shall be effective on the date of postmark.
(2) If a licensee timely appeals a decision of the town clerk, then the licensee may continue to engage in the activity for which the license was issued pending the decision of the town hearing examiner, unless the license was suspended or revoked based on a threat of immediate serious injury to public health or safety pursuant to LCMC 5.25.120(2).
(3) Within 21 calendar days of receiving a timely appeal, the town clerk shall forward the administrative record of the licensing decision to the town hearing examiner.
(4) In the event an applicant or licensee timely appeals the denial or revocation of a license issued under this chapter, the town hearing examiner shall hold a hearing on the appeal within 45 calendar days from receipt of the appeal. Written notice of the date, time, and place of the scheduled hearing shall be given to the applicant by the town clerk at least 10 calendar days prior to the hearing.
(5) The town hearing examiner shall uphold the decision of the town unless it finds the decision is not supported by substantial evidence in the administrative record.
(6) The town hearing examiner shall issue a written decision within 10 calendar days of hearing the appeal. The decision shall be served either in person or by mailing a copy of the decision by certified mail, postage prepaid, return receipt requested, to the applicant or licensee at his or her last known address. The decision of the town hearing examiner shall constitute the final administrative decision of the town and may be appealed to superior court within 10 calendar days. The applicant or licensee shall be responsible for the costs of preparing the administrative record for judicial review. If a licensee timely appeals a decision of the town hearing examiner, then the licensee may continue to engage in the activity for which the license was issued pending the decision of the court, unless the license was suspended or revoked based on a threat of immediate serious injury to public health or safety pursuant to LCMC 5.25.120(2). [Ord. 1250 § 2, 2024.]
Ord. 1250 added a new Chapter 5.25, Adult Businesses. This new chapter has been adopted as the current Chapter 5.25, and the previous version of Chapter 5.25, Adult Entertainment, consisting of Section 5.25.020, has been incorporated into this new chapter.