(A) Findings. Based on evidence concerning the adverse secondary effects of sexually oriented businesses on the community and on the findings incorporated in the cases City of Renton v. Playtime Theaters, Inc., 475 US 41 (1986), Young v. American Mini Theaters, US. 50 (1976), and Barnes v. Glenn Theater, Inc., 501 US 560 (1991), and on studies in other communities including but not limited to; Phoenix, Arizona; Tucson, Arizona; Saint Paul, Minnesota; Houston, Texas; Austin, Texas; Indianapolis, Indiana; Amarillo, Texas; Garden Grove, California; Southern Shores, North Carolina; and also on findings from the Report of the Attorney General’s Working Group on the Regulation of Sexually Oriented Businesses (June 6, 1989, State of Minnesota), a Report on the Regulation of Adult Establishments in North Carolina (May 22, 1996), and findings from the year 2000 Census information, the Council finds:
(1) According to the studies referenced above, sexually oriented businesses tend to lend themselves to ancillary unlawful and unhealthy activities that are uncontrolled by the operators of the establishments. Further without a reasonable regulation there is no mechanism to make owners of these establishments responsible for the activities that occur on their premises;
(2) Sexually oriented businesses provide a potential focus for illicit and undesirable activities by providing a place of contact for numerous potential customers for prostitution, pandering and other activities;
(3) In combination with on-site or nearby alcoholic beverage service or other sexually oriented businesses, the concentration of uses increases the quantity of undesirable activities. There is a snowball effect of undesirable activities that feed upon and support each other;
(4) Facilitation of illicit behavior results in the exposure of children and youth in adjacent neighborhoods or nearby educational or religious institutions to inappropriate models of behavior which they are unprepared to understand or respond to effectively. Where criminal activity is involved, children, women and the elderly are especially prone to victimization;
(5) The very existence of a sexually oriented business can have a negative impact on, and be intimidating to, passers-by;
(6) There is a strong tendency for inappropriate activities to seek nearby venues. Prostitution and other illicit activities will find lightly used and under used nearby parks, parking lots, garages, alleyways and other spaces for their activities. A sexually oriented business does not necessarily create the activity but provides a facilitating setting for supporting these activities. It provides a legitimizing reason for the presence of individuals who have illicit intent;
(7) Sexually oriented businesses have a negative impact upon both residential and commercial property values within 3 blocks of the location. The preponderance of research suggests that the presence of sexually oriented businesses is considered by real estate appraisers and lenders to be evidence of community decline and decay. Other research indicates that areas with sexually oriented businesses experience lower rates of appreciation in property values and/or higher turnover in properties in comparison to comparable areas without sexually oriented businesses. Crime rates are significantly higher in areas with 1 or more sexually oriented businesses than in comparable areas without these businesses within the same municipality. (See American Center for Law and Justice on the Secondary Impacts of Sexually Oriented Businesses);
(8) Certain employees of sexually oriented businesses, defined as adult theaters and adult cabarets, may engage in a higher incidence of certain types of illicit sexual behavior than employees of other commercial establishments;
(9) Sexual acts, including masturbation and oral and anal sex, occur at sexually oriented businesses, especially those that provide private or semi-private booths or cubicles for viewing films, videos, or live sex shows;
(10) Persons frequent adult theaters, adult cabarets and other sexually oriented businesses for the purpose of engaging in sex within the premises of the sexually oriented businesses;
(11) The frequenting of sexually oriented businesses may facilitate high risk sexual behaviors which increase one’s risk of transmitting or contracting a sexually transmissible infection;
(12) Sanitary conditions in some sexually oriented businesses are unhealthy because of the unregulated nature of the activities and the failure of the owners and the operators of the facilities to self-regulate those activities and maintain those facilities;
(13) The Town of Duck total land area is 2.32 square miles, and approximately 6 miles in length, with only 5.9% of the land area zoned for commercial use. The commercial districts in Duck run through the town along NC 12, the major access route to the northern Outer Banks for tourists and residents. The Village Commercial District is the largest commercial district and has established an identity for the Town of Duck due to the limited scope of permitted uses. The limited scope of uses in Duck prevents destination-type attractions and has promoted a quaint village feel for the town;
(14) Extracted from Dare County records from the 2000 Decennial Census, the Town of Duck had a population of 448 full-time residents. The majority of these are retired persons and this trend is expected to continue into future populations;
(15) The Town of Duck was officially incorporated in May 2002. Retail and service businesses necessary for the daily needs of the immediate village are permitted in the Village Commercial District. Other commercial areas in Duck north of the village commercial area include eating establishments, real estate firms, an Inn, and outdoor recreation suppliers;
(16) Any First Amendment rights of citizens or visitors to the Town of Duck to sexually oriented entertainment can readily be met in nearby communities. Provision for the establishment of sexually oriented businesses has been made approximately 10 miles south of Duck by the towns of Kill Devil Hills and Nags Head, and in nearby Elizabeth City. An adult entertainment business currently operates in Currituck County about 5 miles from the town; and
(17) Hearings were held by the Planning Board on October 8, 2004 and the Town Council on November 3, 2004 to allow the general public an opportunity to express opinions on sexually oriented businesses. The consensus held that sexually oriented businesses would negatively impact life styles and moral values if permitted in the Town of Duck.
(B) Sexually oriented business prohibited. Based upon the input from the public hearings, studies recited in the findings and the findings in division (A) above, all sexually oriented businesses as defined in § 156.002 above are prohibited.
(Ord. 04-21, passed 10-6-2004, § 29.1; Am. Ord. 04-24, passed 11-3-2004)