Mission Viejo Municipal Code Ch. 5.01 General

The following terms as used in this title shall, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise, have the respective meanings herein set forth:

Alarm agent means any person who is employed by an alarm business, either directly or indirectly, whose duties include any one or more of the following: selling, maintaining, leasing, servicing, repairing, inspecting, altering, replacing, moving or installing on or in any building, structure or facility, any alarm system, but shall not include persons engaged in the manufacture or sale of alarm systems from fixed locations and who neither visit the location where such alarm system will be installed nor design the plan for the physical location and installation of such alarm system at a specific location.

Alarm business means the work, occupation or profession of any person who performs, authorizes, directs, or causes the selling, leasing, maintaining, servicing, inspection, repairing, altering, replacement, moving or installing of any alarm system, including any business that monitors alarms.

Alarm subscriber means any person who purchases, leases, contracts for, or otherwise obtains an alarm system or for the servicing or maintenance of an alarm system.

Alarm system means any mechanical or electronic device installed at private property which emits a sound or transmits a signal or message when activated, designed or used for:

(1) The detection of an unauthorized entry into, or unlawful act committed within, a building, structure, facility; or

(2) The detection of fire, smoke, heat or which requires response of medical equipment; and

(3) Creates an action from the emergency response agency;

provided, however, that this definition shall not include domestic smoke, fire or burglar alarm devices whose primary purpose is to awaken or alert persons on the premises and which emit a light or sound only within the protected premises.

Business means any business, trade, occupation, practice or profession.

Business solicitor or canvasser. See Canvasser.

Canvasser means any person not having an established place of business in the city who, for himself or as an agent of another, goes from house to house for the purpose of soliciting orders or subscriptions for any goods, wares, merchandise or products, of any nature or description, for future delivery whether or not advance payments are collected at the time the order or subscription is taken, except salesmen or solicitors regularly employed by any wholesale house or jobber who take or solicit orders from retailers or other merchants conducting a regularly established place of business; or any person who sells or offers for sale any goods, wares, merchandise or products in his possession where such goods, wares, merchandise or products are delivered at the time and place the sale is made; or persons selling, offering for sale or delivering to purchasers any farm or garden products where the same are raised or produced upon the property of the persons offering the same for sale, whether or not the property is owned or leased by such persons.

Coin-currency dealer means a person dealing in a business where coins or currency are bought, sold, traded, pawned, auctioned, or accepted for sale on consignment at a price above the face value of such coins or currency upon the basis, express or implied, that the value above the face value is derived from the age, rareness, condition, mineral content, or historical associations of the coins or currency.

Except for coins or currency, "coin-currency dealer" shall not include a shop where secondhand merchandise, including, but not limited to, jewelry or metals, is bought, sold, traded, pawned, auctioned, or accepted for sale on consignment.

Shops which buy, sell, trade, pawn, auction, or accept for sale on consignment coins or currency at a price above the face value of such coin or currency and where secondhand merchandise, other than coin or currency, is bought, sold, traded, pawned, auctioned, or accepted for sale on consignment shall comply with section 5.03.510 as to such other secondhand merchandise.

Commercial means operated or carried on primarily for financial gain.

Commercial garbage means any garbage other than garbage produced upon the premises covered by the license provided for herein.

Direct alarm means any alarm system connecting an authorized source to the emergency response agency by a leased telephone line that may be connected by any automatic dialing device or any other direct line that has no intermediate station.

Emergency response agency means the County of Orange Sheriff-Coroner, County of Orange Fire/California Department of Forestry and the County of Orange General Services Agency Communications Division.

Entertainment means that which engages the attention agreeably, amuses or diverts, whether in private, as by conversation, music or other manner, or in public, by performances, conversation, music or other manner.

Escort means any person who, for pecuniary compensation:

(1) Escorts, accompanies or consorts with another person to, from or about social affairs, entertainments, places of public assembly or places of amusement located or situated within the city.

(2) Escorts, accompanies or consorts with another person in or about any place of public or private resort or within any private quarters located or situated within the city.

(3) Escorts, accompanies or consorts with another person in or about any business or commercial establishment, or part or portion thereof, located or situated within the city.

Escort bureau means any business, agency or self-employed or independent escort who, for pecuniary compensation, furnishes or offers to furnish escorts within the city.

Established place of business means the place where any person conducts any retail or other establishment having a permanent address and being regularly open for business from day to day during ordinary business hours.

False alarm means the activation of an alarm signal necessitating response by an emergency response agency when an emergency situation does not exist.

Figure model means any person, male or female, who poses, or otherwise conducts himself or herself, to be observed, viewed, sketched, painted, drawn, sculptured, photographed, filmed, videotaped, or otherwise similarly depicted, except when such conduct is done in one of the institutions exempted under the definition of "figure model studio."

Figure model studio means any premises or mobile facility where there is conducted the business or transaction of furnishing, providing or procuring figure models who pose for the purpose of being observed or viewed by any person, or being sketched, painted, drawn, sculptured, photographed, filmed, videotaped, or otherwise similarly depicted in the nude before persons who pay a fee, or any other thing of value, as consideration, compensation or gratuity, for the right or opportunity to so observe a figure model, or for admission to, permission to, or as a condition of, remaining on the premises. "Figure model studio" does not include any studio or classroom which is operated by any public agency, or any public or private educational institution authorized under California Education Code § 94300 et seq., to issue and confer a diploma or degree.

Garbage means all animal and vegetable refuse or residue from kitchens, canneries, bakeries, restaurants, lunch stands, meat, fish, fruit or vegetable markets and other food handling places, and all household waste or residue that shall result from the preparation or care for or treatment of foodstuffs resulted to be used as food, or shall have resulted from the preparation or handling of food for human consumption or any decayed and unsound meat, fish, fruit and vegetables.

Interlocutrix means any person who engages in conversation, meditation or communication of any nature while nude in a rap session establishment.

Introductory service means a service offered or performed within the city by any person for pecuniary compensation, the principal purpose of which is to aid persons to become socially acquainted or to otherwise assist persons to meet for social purposes, or which service is generally known or should be known by the offering or performing party to be used by the recipients thereof for the purpose of obtaining information about other persons to be used for social purposes.

Junk collector means any person, firm or corporation having no fixed place of business in the city, engaged in or carrying on the business of collection, buying or selling from house to house or from place to place, gathering, collecting, buying or otherwise dealing in any old rags, sacks, bottles, cans, papers, metal or other articles commonly known as junk.

Junk dealer means any person, firm or corporation having a fixed place of business in the city, engaged in or carrying on the business of buying or selling, either at wholesale or retail, any old rags, sacks, bottles, cans, papers, metal or other articles commonly known as junk.

Massage means a method of treating the external parts of the body for remedial or hygienic purposes, consisting in rubbing, stroking, kneading, adjusting or tapping with the hand or hands or any instrument.

Massage parlor means any Turkish bath parlor, Battle Creek system treatments, magnetic healing institute, massage parlor or any place or institution where treatment of any nature for the human body is given by means of massage as herein defined.

Massagist means both the singular and plural, and shall mean and include any person who practices massage as herein defined, except a physician, surgeon, chiropractor, osteopath or registered physical therapist or any nurse duly licensed to practice their respective professions in the state.

Nude shall have the same meaning as that contained in chapter 11.18 of this Code.

Pawnbroker means a person engaged in conducting, managing or carrying on the business of pawnbroking or the business of lending money for himself or any other person upon personal property, pawns or pledges, or the business of purchasing articles of personal property and reselling or agreeing to resell such articles to the vendors or their assignees at prices agreed upon at or before the time of such purchase.

Pecuniary compensation means any commission, fee, gratuity, hire, profit, reward or any other form of consideration.

Peddler means and includes every person who travels from place to place or has a stand upon any public street, alley or other public place, in the doorway of any room or building, or upon any lot or parcel of land, who sells or offers for sale any goods, wares or merchandise in his possession, other than food, except salesmen or solicitors regularly employed by any wholesale house or jobber, who take or solicit orders from retailers or other merchants conducting a regularly established place of business.

Person means both the singular and the plural, and shall also mean and include person, individual, firm, corporation, copartnership, association, club, society or any other organization.

Profit interest means any interest or share in the present or prospective profit of an escort bureau or introductory service.

Public baths means any place where there is given steam baths, electric lights baths, electric tub baths, shower baths, sponge baths, sunbaths, mineral baths, vapor baths, Russian, Swedish or Turkish baths or any other type of baths, fomentations, alcohol rubs or any other types of rubs or giving salt glows or any type of therapy; any public bathing place which has in connection therewith a steam room, dry hot room, plunge, shower bath or sleeping accommodations.

Rap session establishment means any premises or mobile facility where there is conducted the business or transaction of furnishing, providing, or procuring interlocutrices to engage in conversation, meditation, or communication of any nature while nude with any person or persons who pay a fee, or any other thing of value, as consideration, compensation, or gratuity for the right or opportunity to engage in such communication.

Recognized school of massage means any school or institution of learning which has for its purpose the teaching of the theory, method, profession or work of massagist, and which school requires a resident course of study of not less than 200 hours to be given in not less than three calendar months before the student shall be furnished with a diploma or certificate of graduation from such school or institution of learning, showing the successful completion of such course of study or learning.

Road commissioner or commissioner means the director of community development.

Roadside market means any vehicle, booth, stand, tent, house or other place or structure at or in which goods, wares, merchandise, food, products, vegetables or other commodities are sold, exposed for sale, bartered or given away; or where any business of any nature or kind is transacted.

Secondhand dealer means and includes any person, partnership or corporation whose business is that of engaging in buying, selling, trading, taking in pawn, accepting for sale on consignment, accepting for auctioning or auctioning secondhand personal property. "Secondhand dealer" also means any person who owns or operates an auction or any other event at which two or more persons offer secondhand personal property for sale or exchange and where a fee is charged for the privilege either of offering or displaying such property for sale or exchange or for admission of prospective buyers to the area where such property is offered or displayed for sale or exchange, but does not include a person who owns the land on which the auction or event occurs if he has no control over such auction or event and has no personal knowledge of any facts arising from such auction or event which constitute a violation of any provisions of this title.

Specified anatomical areas includes any of the following:

(1) Less than completely and opaquely covered: human genitals or pubic region; buttock and female breast below a point immediately above the top of the areola; or

(2) Human male genitals in a discernibly turgid state, even if completely and opaquely covered.

Specified sexual activity includes the following:

(1) Actual or simulated sexual intercourse, oral copulation, anal intercourse, oral anal copulation, bestiality, direct physical stimulation of unclothed genitals, flagellation or torture in the context of a sexual relationship, or the use of excretory functions in the context of a sexual relationship, and any of the following depicted sexually oriented acts or conduct: analingus, buggery, coprophagy, coprophilia, cunnilingus, fellatio, necrophilia, pederasty, pedophilia, piquerism, sapphism, zooerasty;

(2) Clearly depicted human genitals in a state of sexual stimulation, arousal or tumescence;

(3) Use of human or animal ejaculation, sodomy, oral copulation, coitus or masturbation;

(4) Fondling or touching of nude human genitals, pubic region, buttocks or female breast;

(5) Masochism, erotic or sexually oriented torture, beating or the infliction of pain;

(6) Erotic or lewd touching, fondling or other sexually oriented contact with an animal by a human being; or

(7) Human excretion, urination, menstruation, vaginal or anal irrigation.

Taxicab stand means the portion of a city highway designated by the road commissioner pursuant to this title for the use of taxicabs while waiting for employment.

(Ord. No. 88-12, § 4(5-1-1—5-1-21), 6-27-88; Ord. No. 05-234, § 1, 9-16-05; Ord. No. 06-242, § 1, 5-15-06)

Cross reference— Definitions generally, § 1.01.170.

It shall be unlawful for any person to engage in, conduct, manage or carry on any of the following businesses, practices, professions or occupations within the city without first having obtained a license therefor in accordance with chapter 5.02 of this title:

(1) Bingo game.

(2) Business solicitor or canvasser.

(3) Pawnbroker, pawnshop, junk dealer, junk collector, secondhand dealer, coin-currency dealer.

(4) Peddler.

(5) Public bath, massagist or massage parlor.

(6) Retail sale of concealable firearms.

(7) Taxicab stand.

(8) Figure model studio and figure models.

(9) Rap session establishment and interlocutrices.

(10) Escort, escort bureau and introductory services.

(Ord. No. 88-12, § 4(5-1-29), 6-27-88; Ord. No. 05-234, § 2, 9-6-05)

This title shall apply to each and every business, trade, occupation, profession or practice herein enumerated and conducted in the city, whether carried on individually or in conjunction with any other activity.

(Ord. No. 88-12, § 4(5-1-30), 6-27-88)

The business regulations contained in chapter 5.03 of this title shall apply to any business, occupation, practice, profession or trade conducted in the city named in such chapter, whether or not a license from the city is required or obtained therefor.

(Ord. No. 88-12, § 4(5-1-41), 6-27-88)