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Mentor-on-the-Lake Overview
Mentor-on-the-Lake, OH Code of Ordinances
CITY OF MENTOR-ON-THE-LAKE, OHIO CODIFIED ORDINANCES
DIRECTORY OF OFFICIALS (2024)
ADOPTING ORDINANCE
COMPARATIVE SECTION TABLE
TABLES OF SPECIAL ORDINANCES
CHARTER
PART TWO - ADMINISTRATION
PART FOUR - TRAFFIC CODE
PART SIX - GENERAL OFFENSES CODE
CHAPTER 606 General Provisions, Administration and Enforcement
CHAPTER 612 Alcoholic Beverages
CHAPTER 618 Animals
CHAPTER 624 Drugs
CHAPTER 628 Fair Housing
CHAPTER 630 Gambling
CHAPTER 636 Offenses Relating to Persons
CHAPTER 642 Offenses Relating to Property
CHAPTER 648 Peace Disturbances
CHAPTER 654 Railroads
CHAPTER 660 Safety, Sanitation and Health
CHAPTER 666 Sex Related Offenses
CHAPTER 670 Watercraft
CHAPTER 672 Weapons and Explosives
CHAPTER 678 Weeds and Litter
CHAPTER 680 Property Maintenance Requirements for Snow Removal and Landscaping
CHAPTER 698 Penalties and Sentencing
PART EIGHT - BUSINESS REGULATION AND TAXATION CODE
PART TEN - STREETS, UTILITIES AND PUBLIC SERVICES CODE
PART TWELVE - PLANNING AND ZONING CODE
PART FOURTEEN - BUILDING AND HOUSING CODE
PART SIXTEEN - FIRE PREVENTION CODE
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   666.15   DECLARATORY JUDGMENT.
   (a)   Without limitation on the persons otherwise entitled to bring an action for a declaratory judgment pursuant to Ohio R.C. Chapter 2721, involving the same issue, the following persons have standing to bring a declaratory judgment action to determine whether particular materials or performances are obscene or harmful to juveniles:
      (1)   The chief legal officer of the Municipality if and when there is reasonable cause to believe that Ohio R.C. 2907.31 or Ohio R.C. 2907.32, or a substantially similar municipal ordinance, is being or is about to be violated;
      (2)   Any person who, pursuant to Ohio R.C. 2907.35(B) or a substantially similar municipal ordinance, has received notice in writing from the chief legal officer stating that particular materials or performances are obscene or harmful to juveniles.
   (b)   Any party to an action for a declaratory judgment pursuant to division (a) of this section is entitled, upon the party's request, to trial on the merits within five days after joinder of the issues, and the court shall render judgment within five days after trial is concluded.
   (c)   An action for a declaratory judgement pursuant to division (a) of this section shall not be brought during the pendency of any civil action or criminal prosecution when the character of the particular materials or performances involved is at issue in the pending case, and either of the following applies:
      (1)   Either of the parties to the action for a declaratory judgment is a party to the pending case;
      (2)   A judgment in the pending case will necessarily constitute res judicata as to the character of the materials or performances involved.
   (d)   A civil action or criminal prosecution in which the character of particular materials or performances is at issue, brought during the pendency of an action for a declaratory judgment involving the same issue, shall be stayed during the pendency of the action for a declaratory judgment.
   (e)   The fact that a violation of Ohio R.C. 2907.31 or Ohio R.C. 2907.32, or a substantially similar municipal ordinance, occurs prior to a judicial determination of the character of the material or performance involved in the violation does not relieve the offender of criminal liability for the violation, even though prosecution may be stayed pending the judicial determination.
(ORC 2907.36)
   666.16   INJUNCTION; ABATEMENT OF NUISANCE.
   (a)   Where it appears that Ohio R.C. 2907.31 or Ohio R.C. 2907.32, or a substantially similar municipal ordinance, is being or is about to be violated, the chief legal officer of the Municipality may bring an action to enjoin the violation. The defendant, upon his or her request, is entitled to trial on the merits within five days after the joinder of the issues, and the court shall render judgment within five days after the trial is concluded.
   (b)   Premises used or occupied for repeated violations of Ohio R.C. 2907.31 or Ohio R.C. 2907.32, or a substantially similar municipal ordinance, constitute a nuisance subject to abatement pursuant to Ohio R.C. Chapter 3767.
(ORC 2907.37)
   666.17   UNLAWFUL OPERATION OF VIEWING BOOTHS DEPICTING SEXUAL CONDUCT.
   (a)   As used in this section:
      (1)   "Commercial establishment" means an entity that is open to the public and to which either of the following applies:
         A.   It has a substantial or significant portion of its stock in trade of the sale, rental, or viewing of visual materials or performances depicting sexual conduct.
         B.   It has as a principal business purpose the sale, rental, or viewing of visual materials or performances depicting sexual conduct.
      (2)   "Visual materials or performances" means films, videos, CD-ROM discs, streaming video, or other motion pictures.
   (b)   No person who has custody, control, or supervision of a commercial establishment, with knowledge of the character of the visual material or performance involved, shall knowingly permit the use of, or offer the use of, viewing booths, stalls, or partitioned portions of a room located in the commercial establishment for the purpose of viewing visual materials or performances depicting sexual conduct unless both of the following apply:
      (1)   The inside of each booth, stall, or partitioned room is visible from, and at least one side of each booth, stall, or partitioned room is open to, a continuous and contiguous main aisle or hallway that is open to the public areas of the commercial establishment and is not obscured by any curtain, door, or other covering or enclosure.
      (2)   No booth, stall, or partitioned room is designed, constructed, pandered, or allowed to be used for the purpose of encouraging or facilitating nudity or sexual activity on the part of or between patrons or members of the public, and no booth, stall, or partitioned room has any aperture, hole, or opening for the purpose of encouraging or facilitating nudity or sexual activity.
   (c)   It is an affirmative defense to a charge under this section that either of the following applies to the involved visual materials or performances:
      (1)   The visual materials or performances depicting sexual conduct are disseminated or presented for a bona fide medical, scientific, educational, religious, governmental, judicial, or other proper purpose and by or to a physician, psychologist, sociologist, scientist, teacher, person pursuing bona fide studies or research, librarian, member of the clergy, prosecutor, judge, or other person having a proper interest in the visual materials or performances.
      (2)   The visual materials or performances depicting sexual conduct, taken as a whole, would be found by a reasonable person to have serious literary, artistic, political, or scientific value or are presented or disseminated in good faith for a serious literary, artistic, political, or scientific purpose and are not pandered for their prurient appeal.
   (d)   Whoever violates this section is guilty of permitting unlawful operation of viewing booths depicting sexual conduct, a misdemeanor of the first degree.
(ORC 2907.38)
   666.18   JUVENILES ON THE PREMISES OF ADULT ENTERTAINMENT ESTABLISHMENTS PROHIBITED.
   (a)   As used in this section:
      (1)   "Adult arcade" means any place to which the public is permitted or invited in which coin-operated, slug-operated, or electronically, electrically, or mechanically controlled still or motion picture machines, projectors, or other image-producing devices are regularly maintained to show images to five or fewer persons per machine at any one time, and in which the images so displayed are distinguished or characterized by their emphasis upon matter exhibiting or describing specified sexual activities or specified anatomical areas.
      (2)   "Adult bookstore", "adult novelty store", or "adult video store".
         A.   Means a commercial establishment that, for any form of consideration, has as a significant or substantial portion of its stock-in-trade in, derives a significant or substantial portion of its revenues from, devotes a significant or substantial portion of its interior business or advertising to, or maintains a substantial section of its sales or display space for the sale or rental of any of the following:
            1.   Books, magazines, periodicals, or other printed matter, or photographs, films, motion pictures, video cassettes, compact discs, slides, or other visual representations, that are characterized by their emphasis upon the exhibition or description of specified sexual activities or specified anatomical areas;
            2.   Instruments, devices, or paraphernalia that are designed for use or marketed primarily for stimulation of human genital organs or for sadomasochistic use or abuse of self or others.
         B.   Includes a commercial establishment as defined in Ohio R.C. 2907.38. An establishment may have other principal business purposes that do not involve the offering for sale, rental, or viewing of materials exhibiting or describing specified sexual activities or specified anatomical areas and still be categorized as an adult bookstore, adult novelty store, or adult video store. The existence of other principal business purposes does not exempt an establishment from being categorized as an adult bookstore, adult novelty store, or adult video store so long as one of its principal business purposes is offering for sale or rental, for some form of consideration, such materials that exhibit or describe specified sexual activities or specified anatomical areas.
      (3)   "Adult cabaret" means a nightclub, bar, juice bar, restaurant, bottle club, or similar commercial establishment, whether or not alcoholic beverages are served, that regularly features any of the following:
         A.   Persons who appear in a state of nudity or seminudity;
         B.   Live performances that are characterized by the exposure of specified anatomical areas or specified sexual activities;
         C.   Films, motion pictures, video cassettes, slides, or other photographic reproductions that are distinguished or characterized by their emphasis upon the exhibition or description of specified sexual activities or specified anatomical areas.
      (4)   "Adult entertainment" means the sale, rental, or exhibition, for any form of consideration, of books, films, video cassettes, magazines, periodicals, or live performances that are characterized by an emphasis on the exposure or display of specified anatomical areas or specified sexual activity.
      (5)   "Adult entertainment establishment" means an adult arcade, adult bookstore, adult novelty store, adult video store, adult cabaret, adult motion picture theater, adult theater, nude or seminude model studio, or sexual encounter establishment. An establishment in which a medical practitioner, psychologist, psychiatrist, or similar professional person licensed by the state engages in medically approved and recognized therapy, including, but not limited to, massage therapy, as regulated pursuant to Ohio R.C. 4731.15, is not an "adult entertainment establishment".
      (6)   "Adult motion picture theater" means a commercial establishment where films, motion pictures, video cassettes, slides, or similar photographic reproductions that are distinguished or characterized by their emphasis upon the exhibition or description of specified sexual activities or specified anatomical areas are regularly shown for any form of consideration.
      (7)   "Adult theater" means a theater, concert hall, auditorium, or similar commercial establishment that, for any form of consideration, regularly features persons who appear in a state of nudity or seminudity or live performances that are characterized by their emphasis upon the exposure of specified anatomical areas or specified sexual activities.
      (8)   "Distinguished or characterized by their emphasis upon" means the dominant or principal character and theme of the object described by this phrase. For instance, when the phrase refers to films "that are distinguished or characterized by their emphasis upon the exhibition or description of specified sexual activities or specified anatomical areas", the films so described are those whose dominant or principal character and theme are the exhibition or description of specified sexual activities or specified anatomical areas.
      (9)   "Nude or seminude model studio" means any place where a person, who regularly appears in a state of nudity or seminudity, is provided for money or any other form of consideration to be observed, sketched, drawn, painted, sculptured, photographed, or similarly depicted by other persons. A modeling class or studio is not a nude or seminude model studio and is not subject to this chapter if it is operated in any of the following ways:
         A.   By a college or university supported entirely or partly by taxation;
         B.   By a private college or university that maintains and operates educational programs, the credits for which are transferable to a college or university supported entirely or partly by taxation;
         C.   In a structure that has no sign visible from the exterior of the structure and no other advertising indicating that a person appearing in a state of nudity or seminudity is available for viewing, if in order to participate in a class in the structure, a student must enroll at least three days in advance of the class and if not more than one nude or seminude model is on the premises at any one time.
      (10)   "Nudity", "nude", or "state of nudity" means the showing of the human male or female genitals, pubic area, vulva, anus, anal cleft, or cleavage with less than a fully opaque covering; or the showing of the female breasts with less than a fully opaque covering of any part of the nipple.
      (11)   "Regularly features" or "regularly shown" means a consistent or substantial course of conduct, such that the films or performances exhibited constitute a substantial portion of the films or performances offered as a part of the ongoing business of the adult entertainment establishment.
      (12)   "Seminude" or "state of seminudity" means a state of dress in which opaque clothing covers not more than the genitals, pubic region, and nipple of the female breast, as well as portions of the body covered by supporting straps or devices.
      (13)   "Sexual encounter establishment".
         A.   Means a business or commercial establishment that, as one of its principal business purposes, offers for any form of consideration a place where either of the following occur:
            1.   Two or more persons may congregate, associate, or consort for the purpose of engaging in specified sexual activities.
            2.   Two or more persons appear nude or seminude for the purpose of displaying their nude or seminude bodies for their receipt of consideration or compensation in any type or form.
         B.   An establishment where a medical practitioner, psychologist, psychiatrist, or similar professional person licensed by the state engages in medically approved and recognized therapy, including, but not limited to, massage therapy, as regulated pursuant to Ohio R.C. 4731.15, is not a "sexual encounter establishment".
      (14)   "Specified anatomical areas" means the cleft of the buttocks, anus, male or female genitals, or the female breast.
      (15)   "Specified sexual activity" means any of the following:
         A.   Sex acts, normal or perverted, or actual or simulated, including intercourse, oral copulation, masturbation, or sodomy;
         B.   Excretory functions as a part of or in connection with any of the activities described in division A. of this definition.
   (b)   No person knowingly shall allow an individual, including, but not limited to, a patron, customer, or employee, who is under 18 years of age on the premises of an adult entertainment establishment.
   (c)   No individual who is under 18 years of age knowingly shall show or give false information concerning the individual's name or age, or other false identification, for the purpose of gaining entrance to an adult entertainment establishment.
   (d)   A person shall not be found guilty of a violation of division (b) of this section if the person raises as an affirmative defense and if the jury or, in a nonjury trial, the court finds the person has established by a preponderance of the evidence, all of the following:
      (1)   The individual gaining entrance to the adult entertainment establishment exhibited to an operator, employee, agent, or independent contractor of the adult entertainment establishment a driver's or commercial driver's license or an identification card issued under Ohio R.C. 4507.50 and 4507.52 showing that the individual was then at least 18 years of age.
      (2)   The operator, employee, agent, or independent contractor made a bona fide effort to ascertain the true age of the individual gaining entrance to the adult entertainment establishment by checking the identification presented, at the time of entrance, to ascertain that the description on the identification compared with the appearance of the individual and that the identification had not been altered in any way.
      (3)   The operator, employee, agent, or independent contractor had reason to believe that the individual gaining entrance to the adult entertainment establishment was at least 18 years of age.
   (e)   In any criminal action in which the affirmative defense described in division (d) of this section is raised, the Registrar of Motor Vehicles or the Deputy Registrar who issued a driver's or commercial driver's license or an identification card under Ohio R.C. 4507.50 and 4507.52 shall be permitted to submit certified copies of the records, in the Registrar's or Deputy Registrar's possession, of the issuance of the license or identification card in question, in lieu of the testimony of the personnel of the Bureau of Motor Vehicles in the action.
   (f)   (1)   Whoever violates division (b) of this section is guilty of permitting a juvenile on the premises of an adult entertainment establishment, a misdemeanor of the first degree. Each day a person violates this division constitutes a separate offense.
      (2)   Whoever violates division (c) of this section is guilty of use by a juvenile of false information to enter an adult entertainment establishment, a delinquent act that would be a misdemeanor of the fourth degree if committed by an adult.
(ORC 2907.39)
   666.19   SEXUALLY ORIENTED BUSINESSES; ILLEGAL OPERATION AND ACTIVITY.
   (a)   As used in this section:
      (1)   “Adult bookstore” or “adult video store” means a commercial establishment that has as a significant or substantial portion of its stock in trade or inventory in, derives a significant or substantial portion of its revenues from, devotes a significant or substantial portion of its interior business or advertising to, or maintains a substantial section of its sales or display space for the sale or rental, for any form of consideration, of books, magazines, periodicals, or other printed matter, or photographs, films, motion pictures, video cassettes, compact discs, slides, or other visual representations, that are characterized by their emphasis upon the exhibition or description of specified sexual activities or specified anatomical areas.
      (2)   “Adult cabaret” has the same meaning as in Ohio R.C. 2907.39.
      (3)   “Adult motion picture theater” means a commercial establishment where films, motion pictures, videocassettes, slides, or similar photographic reproductions that are characterized by their emphasis upon the display of specified sexual activities or specified anatomical areas are regularly shown to more than five individuals for any form of consideration.
      (4)   “Characterized by” means describing the essential character or quality of an item.
      (5)   “Employee” means any individual who performs any service on the premises of a sexually oriented business on a full-time, part-time, or contract basis, regardless of whether the individual is denominated an employee, independent contractor, agent, or otherwise, but does not include an individual exclusively on the premises for repair or maintenance of the premises or for the delivery of goods to the premises.
      (6)   “Nudity”, “nude”, or “state of nudity” has the same meaning as in Ohio R.C. 2907.39.
      (7)   “Operator” means any individual on the premises of a sexually oriented business who causes the business to function or who puts or keeps in operation the business or who is authorized to manage the business or exercise overall operational control of the business premises.
      (8)   “Patron” means any individual on the premises of a sexually oriented business except for any of the following:
         A.   An operator or an employee of the sexually oriented business;
         B.   An individual who is on the premises exclusively for repair or maintenance of the premises or for the delivery of goods to the premises;
         C.   A public employee or a volunteer firefighter emergency medical services worker acting within the scope of the public employee’s or volunteer’s duties as a public employee or volunteer.
      (9)   “Premises” means the real property on which the sexually oriented business is located and all appurtenances to the real property, including, but not limited, to the sexually oriented business, the grounds, private walkways, and parking lots or parking garages adjacent to the real property under the ownership, control, or supervision of the owner or operator of the sexually oriented business.
      (10)   “Regularly” means consistently or repeatedly.
      (11)   “Seminude” or “state of seminudity” has the same meaning as in Ohio R.C. 2907.39.
      (12)   “Sexual device” means any three-dimensional object designed and marketed for stimulation of the male or female human genitals or anus or female breasts or for sadomasochistic use or abuse of oneself or others, including, but not limited to, dildos, vibrators, penis pumps, and physical representations of the human genital organs, but not including devices primarily intended for protection against sexually transmitted diseases or for preventing pregnancy.
      (13)   “Sexual device shop” means a commercial establishment that regularly features sexual devices, but not including any pharmacy, drug store, medical clinic, or establishment primarily dedicated to providing medical or healthcare products or services, and not including any commercial establishment that does not restrict access to its premises by reason of age.
      (14)   “Sexual encounter center” means a business or commercial enterprise that, as one of its principal business purposes, purports to offer for any form of consideration physical contact in the form of wrestling or tumbling between individuals of the opposite sex when one or more of the individuals is nude or seminude.
      (15)   “Sexually oriented business” means an adult bookstore, adult video store, adult cabaret, adult motion picture theater, sexual device shop, or sexual encounter center, but does not include a business solely by reason of its showing, selling, or renting materials that may depict sex.
      (16)   “Specified anatomical areas” includes human genitals, pubic region, and buttocks and the human female breast below a point immediately above the top of the areola.
      (17)   “Specified sexual activity” means sexual intercourse, oral copulation, masturbation, or sodomy, or excretory functions as a part of or in connection with any of these activities.
   (b)   No sexually oriented business shall be or remain open for business between 12:00 midnight and 6:00 a.m. on any day, except that a sexually oriented business that holds a liquor permit pursuant to Ohio R.C. Chapter 4303 may remain open until the hour specified in that permit if it does not conduct, offer, or allow sexually oriented entertainment activity in which the performers appear nude.
   (c)   (1)   No patron who is not a member of the employee’s immediate family shall knowingly touch any employee while that employee is nude or seminude or touch the clothing of any employee while that employee is nude or seminude.
      (2)   No employee who regularly appears nude or seminude on the premises of a sexually oriented business, while on the premises of that sexually oriented business and while nude or seminude, shall knowingly touch a patron who is not a member of the employee’s immediate family or another employee who is not a member of the employee’s immediate family or the clothing of a patron who is not a member of the employee’s immediate family or another employee who is not a member of the employee’s immediate family or allow a patron who is not a member of the employee’s immediate family or another employee who is not a member of the employee’s immediate family to touch the employee or the clothing of the employee.
   (d)   Whoever violates division (b) of this section is guilty of illegally operating a sexually oriented business, a misdemeanor of the first degree.
   (e)   Whoever violates division (c) of this section is guilty of illegal sexually oriented activity in a sexually oriented business. If the offender touches a specified anatomical area of the patron or employee, or the clothing covering a specified anatomical area, a violation of division (c) of this section is a misdemeanor of the first degree. If the offender does not touch a specified anatomical area of the patron or employee, or the clothing covering a specified anatomical area, a violation of division (c) of this section is a misdemeanor of the fourth degree.
(ORC 2907.40)
Statutory reference:
   State indemnification for certain municipal liability stemming from local adult business regulations, see Ohio R.C. 715.55
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