(A) The city has reviewed and analyzed numerous studies, reports, articles, judicial decisions and the experience and legislative findings of other cities around the country concerning the impacts or “secondary effects” of sexually oriented businesses and the sale, distribution, and display of sexually oriented materials (collectively, “sexually oriented business activities”) on the areas in which such activities are located or take place.
(B) Sexually oriented business activities can cause or contribute significantly to increases in criminal activity in the areas in which they are located or take place, thereby taxing crime prevention, law enforcement and public health services.
(C) Nude dancing and other similar conduct provided by sexually oriented business activities encourages prostitution, increases the frequency of sexual assaults, attracts or encourages other related criminal activity, increases the public health and safety risks associated with sexually oriented business activities, and otherwise causes or contributes significantly to the adverse impacts and secondary effects of sexually oriented business activities on the areas to which such activities are located or take place.
(D) Sexually oriented business activities can cause or contribute significantly to the deterioration of residential neighborhoods, can impair the character and quality of such neighborhoods and the housing located therein, and can inhibit the proper maintenance and growth of such neighborhoods, limiting or reducing the availability of quality, affordable housing for area residents and reducing the value of property in such areas.
(E) Sexually oriented business activities can undermine the stability of other established business and commercial uses in the areas in which sexually oriented business activities are located or take place and can cause or contribute significantly to the deterioration of such other business and commercial uses, thereby causing or contributing to a decline in such uses, an inhibition on business and commercial growth, and a resulting adverse impact on local government revenues and property values.
(F) Sexually oriented business activities can have a dehumanizing and distracting influence on young people and students attending schools, can diminish or destroy the enjoyment and family atmosphere of persons using parks, playgrounds, forest preserves and other public recreational areas, can interfere with or even destroy the spiritual experience of persons attending church, synagogue, or other places of worship, and can interfere with or even destroy the opportunity for solemn and respectful contemplation at cemeteries and similar facilities.
(G) The presence of sexually oriented business activities is perceived by the public generally and by neighboring business owners and residents as an indication that the area in which such activities occur or take place is in decline and deteriorating, a perception that can quickly lead to such decline and deterioration, prompting businesses and residents to flee the affected area to avoid the consequences of such decline and deterioration.
(H) The exterior appearance, including signage, of sexually oriented business activities can have an adverse impact on young people and students; can contribute to the decline in property values associated with sexually oriented business activities; and can otherwise cause or contribute significantly to the adverse impacts and secondary effects of sexually oriented business activities on the areas in which such activities are located or take place.
(I) The conduct of sexually oriented business activities, including specifically, but without limitation, adult cabarets that provide nude dancing and other similar conduct and the operation and use of adult booths, often encourages or allows sexual activities and prostitution, among other things, that place employees and patrons of such businesses at risk to exposure and contraction of sexually transmitted diseases, including specifically, but without limitation, the HIV virus, Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome, and venereal diseases.
(J) The city has determined that sexually oriented business activities will, unless properly regulated, have these and other severe adverse impacts and secondary effects on the city and its residents.
(K) For the reasons set forth above, among others, the members of the City Council have found and determined that it is essential to the health, safety and general welfare of the city and its residents to adopt comprehensive licensing regulations relating to sexually oriented business activities, to the distribution and display of sexually oriented materials, and to the types and operation of sexually oriented businesses that may locate in the city.
(L) The members of the City Council have further found and determined that the establishment of the regulations provided in this chapter on the operation, maintenance, and structural aspects of sexually oriented business activities is necessary to minimize to the greatest extent possible, or to eliminate altogether, the public health and safety risks that customarily, but unnecessarily, exist in connection with such activities.
(M) The members of the City Council have further found and determined that the limitations on the hours of operation of sexually oriented business activities set forth in this chapter are necessary to protect and secure neighboring uses, to control adverse noise and traffic impacts associated with sexually oriented business activities, to enhance enforcement and implementation of the regulations set forth herein, and to otherwise address, mitigate, and, if possible, eliminate the adverse impacts and secondary effects of sexually oriented business activities.
(N) The members of the City Council have further found and determined that the disclosure and background information requirements set forth in this chapter relating to the owners, operators, and others in a position of control over sexually oriented business activities are necessary in order for the city to implement and enforce the terms and conditions of this chapter, to aid in the prevention of crime related to sexually oriented business activities, to minimize to the greatest extent possible, or eliminate altogether, the public health risks associated with sexually oriented business activities, and to otherwise carry out the purposes and objectives of the regulations established herein.
(O) The regulations established pursuant to this chapter are in no way based on the content of protected speech, if any, associated with sexually oriented business activities, and the purpose and intent of the regulations established pursuant to this chapter is not to restrict or prohibit protected speech, if any, associated with sexually oriented business activities, but rather is to address, mitigate, and, if possible, eliminate the adverse impacts and secondary effects of sexually oriented business activities in the areas in which such activities are located or take place and to ensure that these activities are established, managed, and operated in a safe and legal manner at all times.
(P) The city has for many years engaged in rigorous, firm, and effective policies and regulations relating to uses and activities that could have adverse impacts on the continued stability and vitality of the residential and business areas of the city and the regulations imposed by this chapter are a continuation of and consistent with those long-standing policies and regulations.
(Q) The city has the power and authority to adopt and enforce the terms, conditions, and regulations established in this chapter pursuant to (i) its general police powers to protect the public health, safety, morals, and general public welfare; and (ii) all other applicable provisions of law.