1143.02 APPLICATION AND REVIEW.

It is recognized that certain land uses possess characteristics of such unique and special nature relative to location, design, size, method of operation, and circulation that each specific use must be considered individually. These specific uses as they are conditionally permissible under the provisions of the district regulations shall follow the procedures and requirements of this chapter, as applicable.

(Ord. 4-21. Passed 1-4-21.)

(a) Unless otherwise specified, the Planning Commission shall be responsible for reviewing and deciding upon all requests for conditional uses.

(b) Requests for approval of a conditional use shall be submitted to the Zoning Administrator on a form for that purpose, along with an application fee and a final site plan as specified in Chapter 1145. The Zoning Administrator shall review the application and final site plan for completeness, as well as conformance with the requirements of the zoning district in which the property is located and the applicable standards for the use as specified in this chapter. If the application and plan are complete, the material will be forwarded to the Planning Commission for action; provided, if the subject property is located within the design review overlay district or on property containing a designated historic or landmark structure, the materials shall also be forwarded to the Design Review Board for review and comment.

(c) The Planning Commission or Design Review Board, as applicable, shall review the application, site plan and any supplementary materials, and shall conduct a public hearing which shall be held at the next available meeting following receipt of the application and acknowledgement by the Zoning Administrator that the application is complete.

(1) Before holding the public hearing, notice shall be given in one or more newspapers of general circulation in the City at least seven (7) days before the date of the hearing. The notice shall set the time and place of the hearing and the nature of the proposed conditional use.

(2) Before holding the public hearing, written notice shall also be mailed by first class mail at least ten (10) days before the hearing to all owners of property abutting and directly across the street from any part of the premises for which a conditional use is being requested.

(d) Following the public hearing, the Planning Commission or Design Review Board, as applicable, shall consider recommendations from City staff and comments from the public. Based on this input and the conformance of the request with the general standards of Section 1143.03 and any specific standards of this chapter related to the proposed conditional use, the application shall be approved, approved with conditions, tabled or denied.

(e) If an application for conditional use is found to meet all applicable standards of this Ordinance, it shall be approved.

(f) If denied, the applicant may appeal the decision to the appropriate court in accordance with Chapter 2505 and 2506 of the Ohio Revised Code.

(Ord. 4-21. Passed 1-4-21.)

1143.03 GENERAL REVIEW STANDARDS.

In addition to the specific requirements for conditionally permissible uses as specified in this chapter, the Planning Commission shall review the particular facts and circumstances of each proposed use in terms of the following standards and shall determine that each use at the proposed location:

(a) Is, in fact, a conditionally permissible use within the zoning district in which the property is located.

(b) Will be consistent with the City's Comprehensive Plan and Zoning Ordinance.

(c) Will be designed, constructed, and maintained to be harmonious and appropriate in appearance with the existing or intended character of the vicinity.

(d) Will not create additional requirements at public cost for public facilities and services that will be detrimental to the economic welfare of the community.

(e) Will not involve uses, activities, processes, material, equipment, and conditions of operation that will be detrimental to any persons, property, or the general welfare by reason of excessive production of traffic, noise, smoke, fumes, glare, or odors.

(f) Will have vehicular approaches to the property that are the minimum necessary to provide adequate and safe access to the property.

(g) Will not result in the destruction, loss or damage of a natural, scenic, or historic feature of significant importance.

(Ord. 4-21. Passed 1-4-21.)

1143.04 SPECIFIC USE CONDITIONS - FOOD, DRINK, ENTERTAINMENT AND HOSPITALITY.

(a) Bars, Taverns and Night Clubs.

(1) The establishment shall meet all requirements of Ohio state law.

(2) Live entertainment or other forms of amplified music may be provided outdoors, only if the establishment is at least 1,000 feet from any residence.

The requirements of related to outdoor seating, as specified in this section, shall also apply.

(b) Bed and Breakfast.

(1) A bed and breakfast shall be operated at all times in accordance with State of Ohio requirements.

(2) A bed and breakfast shall not provide more than five (5) guest rooms, plus a common area for use by all guests.

(3) A bed and breakfast establishment shall be located only in a detached single-family dwelling, designed and constructed for single family use, which shall contain at least 1,500 square feet of living area. For each guest room in excess of two (2), an additional 100 square feet of floor area shall be required.

(4) The bed and breakfast shall be the principal residence of the owner, who shall reside there when the bed and breakfast is in operation. If the owner is not in residence in the dwelling unit for fourteen (14) consecutive days or more, the bed and breakfast shall be closed until the owner returns.

(5) Meals for guests shall be limited to breakfast and evening snack.

(6) There shall be at least one (1) parking space provided for each guest room, in addition to the parking spaces required to serve the principal residence.

(7) One sign, not exceeding six (6) square feet, shall be allowed for identification purposes. Sign lighting shall be down-lit and shielded from view off site. Internally lighted signs are not permitted.

(8) Cooking facilities in bed and breakfast guest rooms are prohibited.

(9) Exterior refuse storage facilities shall be screened from view on all sides by a six (6) foot solid decorative fence or wall, or by other screening approved by the Zoning Administrator.

(10) In addition to the site plan required by this Ordinance, a floor plan of the dwelling unit and the use of each room shall also be submitted with the conditional use application.

(11) No use other than as the owner's principal residence and as a bed and breakfast shall be permitted.

(1) The outdoor seating area shall not obstruct pedestrian movement along adjacent sidewalks. A minimum sidewalk width of five (5) feet shall remain unobstructed between the limits of the outdoor seating area and the outer edge of the walkway.

(2) The outdoor seating area shall be surrounded by a decorative fence or similar enclosure with access only from within the building.

(3) Outdoor seating capacity shall be included in the computation of required parking.

(4) Limitations may be imposed upon hours of operation, live music, outdoor sound amplification, and/or lighting where the proposed use may create nuisance effects upon adjacent or nearby residential uses.

(d) Public Boat Ramp.

(1) A minimum site size of one (1) acre shall be provided.

(2) Evidence of state and/or federal approvals, as applicable, shall be provided.

(3) Paved parking shall be provided to accommodate vehicles and trailers.

(4) Restroom facilities shall be installed.

(e) Restaurants, Drive-in or Drive-Through.

(1) Sufficient vehicular stacking capacity for the drive-in or drive-through portion of the operation shall be provided to ensure that traffic does not extend into the public right-of-way. A minimum of eight (8) stacking spaces for each service ordering station shall be provided. Stacking spaces shall be located so as not to interfere with vehicular circulation, fire lanes, parking spaces and egress from the property by vehicles not using the drive-in or drive-through portion of the facility.

(2) Public access to the site shall comply with the driveway spacing standards of Section 1149.06 but, in no case, be located closer than 125 feet to any intersection or other driveway on the same side of the street, as measured from the nearest edge of pavement to the nearest edge of pavement.

(3) Internal circulation and access to/egress from the site shall not substantially impair the movement of other modes of transportation, such as bicycles and pedestrians, to and through the site.

(4) Menu boards with speakers for the transmission or broadcasting of voices or music shall be oriented and/or muffled to prevent sound from being audible beyond the boundaries of the site.

(f) Sexually Oriented Businesses.

(1) Purpose. The proximity of sexually oriented businesses to certain uses considered particularly susceptible to the negative impacts of the concentration of sexually oriented uses tends to erode the quality of life, adversely affect property values, disrupt business investment, encourage residents and businesses to move or avoid the community, increase crime, and contribute to a blighting effect on the surrounding area. There is convincing documented evidence, all of which is relevant to the problems and conditions that could prevail in this City, of the deleterious effect that sexually oriented businesses have on both existing businesses around them and the surrounding residential areas to which they may be adjacent. Therefore, the following purposes are served by these regulations:

A. This section describes the uses regulated and the specific standards necessary to ensure that the adverse effects of these uses will not contribute to the deterioration of the surrounding neighborhood, to prevent undesirable concentration of these uses, and to require sufficient spacing from uses considered most susceptible to negative impacts.

B. These provisions are not intended, nor shall they have the effect of, imposing a limitation or restriction on the content of any communicative materials including, but not limited to, sexually oriented materials that are protected by the First Amendment to the United States Constitution.

C. Additionally, it is not the intent of the provisions of this section, nor shall it have the effect of, restricting or denying access by adults to sexually oriented materials that are protected by said federal and state constitutions.

D. Further, it is not the intent of these provisions, nor shall they have the effect of, denying access by the distributors and exhibitors of sexually oriented entertainment to their target market.

E. These regulations shall not be interpreted as intending to legitimize any activities that are prohibited by federal or state law, or by any other ordinance of the City of Lorain.

F. The provisions of this section shall apply to all uses defined in this ordinance as sexually oriented businesses.

(2) Conditional Use Approval.

A. The application for and review of the conditional use request for a sexually oriented business shall be processed, as specified in Section 1143.02; provided, that the Planning Commission shall only make a recommendation to approve, approve with conditions or deny the application. The recommendation shall be made to the City Council.

B. Upon receipt of the recommendation, the City Council shall make a decision to approve, approve with conditions or deny the application for conditional use approval. At the discretion of either body, a public hearing, duly noticed in accordance with the provisions of Section 1177.03, may be conducted.

(3) Location of Sexually Oriented Businesses.

A. A sexually oriented business shall not be located within 1,000 feet, measured in a straight line from the nearest property line of the sexually oriented business to the nearest property line of:

i. Any place of religious worship;

ii. Any school;

iii. The boundary of any residential zoning district;

iv. A public park or recreation area;

v. Any public library;

vi. A day care facility;

vii. An establishment selling alcoholic beverages;

viii. A youth activity center; or

ix. The property line of a lot devoted to residential use.

B. A sexually oriented business shall not be operated, established, substantially enlarged, or have ownership or control of such a business transferred within 500 feet of another sexually oriented business.

C. For the purpose of this article, measurement shall be made in a straight line, without regard to intervening structures or objects, from the nearest portion of the building or structure used as a part of the premises where a sexually oriented business is conducted, to the nearest property line of the premises of a use or location specified in subsection (f)(3)A. hereof.

D. A sexually oriented business lawfully operating as a conforming use is not rendered a nonconforming use by the location, subsequent to the grant of conditional approval, of any use specified in subsection (f)(3)A. hereof. This provision does not apply if conditional use approval has expired or has been revoked.

(4) Management and Employees. Employees of such establishments must be at least eighteen (18) years of age. A manager must be on duty and responsible for activities at the establishment at all times.

(5) Nudity at Any Sexually Oriented Business.

A. The United States Supreme Court decision in Barnes v. Glen Theater, Inc., 501 U.S. 560, 111 (1991) which upheld the rights of communities to prohibit live public exposure of a person's private parts, specifically applies to sexually oriented businesses (regardless of whether or not conditional approval has been granted to the business under this section) where no alcoholic beverages are sold, served, or consumed at the premises.

B. Public nudity is prohibited within the City, including any sexually oriented business. Any sexually oriented business which is found in violation of this section shall have its conditional approval rescinded pursuant to the provisions of this section.

C. This section shall prohibit the employment or use of any person, in any capacity, in the sale or service of beverages and/or food while such person is unclothed or in such attire, costume or clothing, as to expose to view any portion of the female breast below the top of the areola or of any portion of the male or female pubic hair, anus, cleft of the buttocks, vulva and genitals.

D. Live entertainment where any person appears in the manner described in subsection (f)(5)A. hereof may not perform and/or simulate acts of sexual intercourse, masturbation, sodomy, bestiality, oral copulation, flagellation or any sexual act prohibited by law. Also prohibited shall be the caressing or fondling of the breast, buttocks, anus and/or genitals. Also prohibited will be the displaying of the male or female pubic hair, anus, vulva or genitals.

E. Nude dancers/entertainers may not dance among the audience. The entertainer must perform on a stage separate from the audience and built at least two (2) feet above the audience level. No adult entertainer shall be allowed to walk or mingle among the audience unless the performer is fully clothed.

F. No advertisements, handbills, marquees or any other form of advertisement may use sexual language or display nudity where the advertisement may be viewed by the public.

G. Proper care shall be exercised to assure that no nudity is in view of the public.

H. Adult entertainers/dancers may not solicit tips from the customers.

(6) Additional Regulations for Adult Motels.

A. Evidence that a sleeping room in a hotel, motel, boarding house or a similar commercial establishment has been rented and vacated two (2) or more times within less than ten (10) hours creates a reasonable presumption that the establishment is an adult motel as that term is defined in this ordinance.

B. A person commits a misdemeanor if, as the person in control of a sleeping room in a hotel, motel, boarding house or similar commercial establishment that has not received conditional approval as a sexually oriented business, he rents or subrents a sleeping room to a person and, within ten (10) hours from the time the room is rented, rents or subrents the same sleeping room again.

C. For purposes of this subsection, the terms "rent" or "subrent" mean the act of permitting a room to be occupied for any form of consideration.

(7) Regulations Pertaining to Exhibition of Sexually Explicit Films or Videos. If a sexually oriented business, other than an adult motel, contains a viewing room of less than 150 square feet for showing a film, video cassette, DVD, digital display or other video reproduction depicting specified sexual activities or specified anatomical areas, the following requirements shall apply:

A. Upon application for conditional use approval, the application shall be accompanied by a diagram of the premises showing a plan specifying the location of one or more manager's stations and the location of all overhead lighting fixtures and identifying any portion of the premises in which patrons will not be permitted. A manager's station may not exceed thirty-two (32) square feet of floor area. The diagram in the nature of an engineer's or architect's blueprint shall not be required; however, each diagram must be oriented to the north or to some designated street or object and be drawn to a designated scale or with marked dimensions sufficient to show the interior dimensions of all areas of the premises to an accuracy of plus or minus six (6) inches.

B. The application shall be sworn to be true and correct by the applicant.

C. No alteration in the configuration or location of a manager's station may be made without approval.

D. It is the duty of the owners and operator of the premises to ensure that at least one (1) employee is on duty and situated in each manager's station at all times that any patron is present inside the premises.

E. The interior of the premises shall be configured in such a manner that there is an unobstructed view from at least one (1) manager's station of every area of the premises to which any patron is permitted access for any purpose, excluding restrooms. Restrooms shall not contain video display equipment. The required view must be by direct line of sight from the manager's station.

F. It shall be the duty of the owners and operator, and it shall also be the duty of any agents and employees present in the premises to ensure that the required view area remains unobstructed by any doors, walls, merchandise, display racks, or other materials at all times and that no patron is permitted access to any area which has been designated in the application as an area in which patrons will not be permitted.

G. No viewing room may be occupied by more than one (1) person at any time. No holes, commonly known as "glory holes" shall be allowed in the walls or partitions which separate each viewing room from an adjoining room or restroom.

H. The premises shall be equipped with overhead lighting fixtures of sufficient intensity to illuminate every place to which patrons are permitted access at an illumination of not less than one (1) footcandle as measured at the floor level. It shall be the duty of the owners and operator and of any agents and employees in the premises to ensure that the illumination is maintained at all times that any patron is in the premises.

(8) Prohibitions Regarding Minors. A person shall be guilty of a misdemeanor if he/she operates or causes to be operated a sexually oriented business, regardless of whether or not a permit has been issued for the business, and knowingly or with reasonable cause to know, permit, suffer, or allow:

A. Admittance of a person under eighteen (18) years of age to the premises, unless accompanied by a parent or guardian;

B. A person under eighteen (18) years of age to remain at the premises, unless accompanied by a parent or guardian.

C. A person under eighteen (18) years of age to purchase goods or services at the premises without the specific consent of a parent or guardian; or

D. A person who is under eighteen (18) years of age to work at the premises as an employee.

(9) Advertising and Lighting Regulations.

A. It shall be unlawful and a person shall be guilty of a misdemeanor if he/she operates or causes to be operated a sexually oriented business, regardless of whether or not conditional use approval has been issued, and advertises the presentation of specified sexual activities contrary to any applicable state statute or local ordinance.

B. It shall be unlawful and a person shall be guilty of a misdemeanor if he/she operates or causes to be operated a sexually oriented business, regardless of whether or not conditional use approval has been issued, and displays or otherwise exhibits the materials and/or performances available at such sexually oriented business in any advertising which is visible outside the premises. This prohibition shall not extend to advertising the existence or location of the sexually oriented business.

C. The operator shall not allow any portion of the interior premises to be visible from outside the premises.

D. All off-street parking and premise entries of the sexually oriented business shall be illuminated from dusk to closing hours of operation with a lighting system which provides an average maintained horizontal illumination of one (1) footcandle of light on the parking surface and walkways. This required lighting level is established in order to provide sufficient illumination of the parking areas and walkways for the personal safety of patrons and employees and to reduce the incidence of vandalism and criminal conduct. The lighting shall be shown on the required site plan of the premises.

E. Nothing contained in this section shall relieve the operator(s) of a sexually oriented business from complying with all other applicable requirements of this Ordinance, as it may be amended from time to time, or any subsequently enacted City ordinances or regulations.

(10) Hours of Operation. It shall be unlawful and a person shall be guilty of a misdemeanor if:

A. He/she operates or causes to be operated a sexually oriented business, regardless of whether or not conditional approval has been granted, and allows the business to remain open, or to permit any employee to engage in a performance, solicit a performance, make a sale, solicit a sale, provide a service, or solicit a service, between the hours of 1:00 a.m. and 9:00 a.m. on any particular day and between 12:01 a.m. Sunday and 9:00 a.m. Monday.

B. An employee of a sexually oriented business, regardless of whether or not conditional approval has been granted for the business, engages in a performance, solicits a performance, makes a sale, solicits a sale, provides a service or solicits a service between the hours of 1:00 a.m. and 9:00 a.m. on any particular day and between 12:01 a.m. Sunday and 9:00 a.m. Monday.

(Ord. 4-21. Passed 1-4-21.)

(g) Short-Term Rental.

(1) A short-term rental shall be operated at all times in accordance with State of Ohio requirements.

(2) Required Approvals. A short-term rental shall be in compliance with all applicable City of Lorain ordinances, including but not limited to, rental registration requirements and the transient lodging tax.

A. Proof of Compliance. Copies of any approvals from the Building, Housing & Planning Department, Treasurer's Office, Income Tax Department, and all other appropriate agencies are required.

(3) There shall be at least one and one-quarter (1.25) off-street parking spaces provided for each guest room. Spaces in an attached or detached garage are included.

(4) Approval in Business and Industrial districts is only applicable in preexisting non-conforming uses for residential purposes.

(5) In addition to the provisions outlined in Lorain Codified Ordinance 1173.04 (Enforcement), when Zoning Administrator finds that any provision of this Code is being violated, the Planning Commission shall review the violation(s) and relevant provisions. Following its review, the Planning Commission may revoke the permit after noncompliance has been determined. (Ord. 251-23. Passed 12-4-23.)

Disclaimer: This Code of Ordinances and/or any other documents that appear on this site may not reflect the most current legislation adopted by the Municipality. American Legal Publishing provides these documents for informational purposes only. These documents should not be relied upon as the definitive authority for local legislation. Additionally, the formatting and pagination of the posted documents varies from the formatting and pagination of the official copy. The official printed copy of a Code of Ordinances should be consulted prior to any action being taken. For further information regarding the official version of any of this Code of Ordinances or other documents posted on this site, please contact the Municipality directly or contact American Legal Publishing toll-free at 800-445-5588.

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