§ 5.06.005. Purpose and findings.

(a)

The purpose of these adult business regulations is to prevent crime, protect the city tourist and retail trade, maintain property values, and preserve the quality of the city's neighborhoods, commercial districts and urban life, and permit reasonable alternative avenues of communication to prevent the proliferation of illegal sex-related businesses. It is not the intent nor effect of this code to restrict or deny access by adults to adult businesses protected by the First Amendment; nor is it to suppress any speech activities protected by the First Amendment. Instead, the intent is to enact a content-neutral ordinance which addresses the adverse secondary effects of adult businesses.

The predominant concern of these regulations is the limitation and prevention of the adverse secondary effects of the operation of adult businesses which manifest through exposure of minors to adult business activities and materials (including in the form of exterior signage), distraction to motorists, harm to neighboring properties, businesses and tourism, spread of disease, commission of crime and exacerbation of these effects by the clustering of adult businesses and allowance and use of alcohol on the premises of adult businesses.

The provisions of these regulations have neither the purpose nor effect of imposing any limitation or restriction on the content of any communication, including adult business-related materials or performances. Similarly, it is neither the intent nor effect of these regulations to restrict or deny access by adults to adult business-related communication protected by the First Amendment, or to deny access by the distributors, exhibitors, and performers of adult business-related communication to their intended market. Likewise, the city seeks to assure adequate locations within the City of Reno for the conduct of adult businesses, and that regulations governing adult businesses are content neutral reasonable time, place and manner regulations furthering the purpose of these regulations.

(b)

Based on evidence of the adverse secondary effects of the operation of adult businesses presented in hearings and in reports made available to the city council, including findings and interpretations incorporated in multiple court cases, and including multiple studies and reports concerning secondary effects occurring in and around adult businesses, the city council finds:

(1)

Adult businesses, as a category of commercial uses, are associated with a wide variety of adverse secondary effects including, but not limited to, personal and property crimes, prostitution, potential spread of disease, lewdness, public indecency, obscenity, illicit drug use and drug trafficking, negative impacts on surrounding properties, urban blight, exposure of minors to adult business activities and materials (including in the form of exterior signage), exposure of minors to alcohol and adverse secondary effects associated with adult businesses, decrease in nearby property value in both commercial and residential areas, impairment to the economic vitality of nearby businesses, litter, and sexual assault and exploitation. Alcohol consumption impairs judgment and lowers inhibitions, thereby increasing the risk of and exacerbating adverse secondary effects.

(2)

Adult businesses should be separated by suitable zoning location and reasonably spaced from sensitive land uses to minimize the impact of their secondary effects upon such uses.

(3)

Each of the foregoing negative secondary effects constitutes a harm which the city has a substantial government interest in preventing and/or abating. This substantial government interest in preventing secondary effects, which is the city's rationale for this section of code, exists independent of any comparative analysis between adult businesses and non-adult businesses. In addition, the city's interest in regulating adult businesses extends to preventing future secondary effects of either current or future adult businesses that may locate in the city. The city finds that the cases and documentation relied on in this section of code are reasonably believed to be relevant to said secondary effects.

The city hereby adopts and incorporates herein its stated findings and legislative record related to the adverse secondary effects of adult businesses, including the judicial opinions, expert testimony, scholarly literature, and reports related to such secondary effects.

(Ord. No. 6513, § 1, 5-8-19)