(A) It is hereby found and determined that the public health, safety, and welfare require that the number and location of licensed card rooms in the city be limited, and the following regulations are required to fulfill such objectives:
(1) The total number of licensed card rooms permitted in the city shall be no more than those in operation as of September 1, 2015 and licensed by the city on that date, unless otherwise limited by the Act or subsequent state law.
(2) When, pursuant to the provisions of this section, a card room license can be granted, it shall be granted or denied in the numerical order in which the application was made, all applications being subject to the provisions of this chapter.
(3) No card room license shall be granted, nor shall the transfer of the location of an existing card room license be authorized, until a use permit and the approval of the Council has first been obtained. A use permit may be granted if the proposed location will be desirable to the public convenience or welfare and will be in harmony with the zoning provisions, the General Plan, this subchapter and any specific plan and if the location is proper in relation to adjacent uses.
(4) No more than one card room license shall be issued for the downtown area. The downtown area is described as that territory bounded by the San Joaquin River to Sixth Street and L to A Streets. The Council finds that in the past an undue concentration of card rooms in the downtown area has helped lead to blighting conditions.
(5) A card room shall not be located within 1,000 feet of a public or private pre-school or K-12 school, a licensed hospital, medical clinic, alcohol or other drug abuse recovery or treatment center, or community care residential facility providing mental and/or social rehabilitation service, a public park or playground, a public library, a church or place of worship, or another card room or place where gambling is permitted. The footage distance shall be measured from the closest point on the exterior property lines of the card room establishment to the closest point on the exterior property lines of the other property. The location of a card room that was licensed and operating at that location as of September 1, 2015 is exempt from this subsection.
(Ord. 2051-C-S, passed 10-25-11; Am. Ord. 2095-C-S, passed 2-24-15; Measure E Initiative, adopted 6-7-16)