Chapter 5.77

• (a) The intent of this chapter is to regulate adult-oriented businesses which, because of their very nature, are believed to have any of the recognized significant secondary effects on the community which include, but are not limited to: depreciated property values and increased vacancies in residential and commercial areas in the vicinity of the adult-oriented businesses; higher crime rates, noise, debris or vandalism in the vicinity of adult-oriented businesses; and blighting conditions such as low level maintenance of commercial premises and parking lots which thereby have a deleterious effect upon adjacent areas. Special regulation of these uses is necessary to ensure that these adverse effects will not contribute to the blighting or downgrading of the neighborhoods in the vicinity of the adultoriented businesses. It is neither the intent, nor effect of this section to impose limitations or restrictions on the content of any communicative material. Similarly, it is neither the intent, nor effect of this section to restrict or deny access by adults to sexually oriented materials or merchandise protected by the First Amendment, or to deny access by the distributors or exhibitors of adult-oriented businesses to their intended market.

• (b) Nothing in this section is intended to authorize, legalize or permit the establishment, operation or maintenance of any business, building or use which violates any city ordinance or any statute of the state of California regarding public nuisances, unlawful exposure, sexual conduct, lewdness or obscene or harmful matter or the exhibition or public display thereof.

• (Ord. 1511 § 2, 1995; Ord. 2082, 3/23/2023)

"Adjacent" means directly abutting, having a boundary or property line(s) in common or bordering directly, contiguous to, or directly across a public right-of-way.

"Adult entertainment establishment" means a bar, lounge, nightclub, movie theater, live theater, or similar establishment which features as a regular and substantial course of conduct, any type of live entertainment, films, or other oral or visual representations which are distinguished or characterized by an emphasis on or relating to specified sexual activities or specified anatomical parts (see "Adult-oriented business" for a definition of regular and substantial portion of its business).

"Adult retail establishment" means any establishment, such as an adult bookstore, adult video store, adult arcade, or any similar retail use which as a regular and substantial course of conduct, displays and/or distributes sexually-oriented material and/or merchandise, including printed materials, videos, sexual devices, and similar items, which are distinguished or characterized by an emphasis on or relating to specified sexual activities or specified anatomical parts (see "Adultoriented business" for a definition of regular and substantial portion of its business).

"Adult sex venue" means any establishment not primarily dedicated to providing overnight lodging accommodations, including a private club, which as a regular and substantial course of conduct permits persons to engage in specified sexual activities in any public or semipublic portion of the establishment or which provides any private room to persons more than once in a 20-hour period in which persons are permitted to engage in specified sexual activities. For the purpose of this section, a "public or semipublic portion of an establishment" shall mean

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City of Palm Springs, CA

BUSINESS REGULATIONS

§ 5.77.010

§ 5.77.010

any portion of the establishment in which invitees of the establishment are permitted access and which is not let, leased or rented more than once in a 20-hour period to persons who are entitled to exclusive use of the room. The above notwithstanding, an "adult sex venue" is also any place that represents itself to any person or group of persons as a place for persons to engage in specified sexual activities.

f the establishment in which invitees of the establishment are permitted access and which is not let, leased or rented more than once in a 20-hour period to persons who are entitled to exclusive use of the room. The above notwithstanding, an "adult sex venue" is also any place that represents itself to any person or group of persons as a place for persons to engage in specified sexual activities.

"Adult-oriented business" means any business establishment or concern which as a regular and substantial course of conduct performs as an adult entertainment establishment, adult retail establishment, adult sex venue, or stripper; any business establishment or concern which as a regular and substantial course of conduct sells or distributes sexually-oriented merchandise or sexually-oriented material; or any other business establishment or concern which as a regular and substantial course of conduct offers to its patrons products, merchandise, services or entertainment characterized by an emphasis on matters depicting, describing or relating to specified sexual activities or specified anatomical parts. "Adult-oriented business" shall also include any business establishment or concern which, as a regular and substantial course of conduct provides or allows performers, models, actors, actresses or employees to appear in any place in attire which does not opaquely cover specified anatomical parts. For the purposes of this section, a business establishment or concern has established the provision of products, merchandise, services or entertainment characterized by an emphasis on matters depicting, describing or relating to specified sexual activities or specified anatomical parts as a regular and substantial course of conduct when one or more of the following conditions exist:

• (1) The area devoted to sexually-oriented merchandise and/or sexually-oriented material exceeds more than 20 percent of the total display or floor space area open to the public;

• (2) The business establishment or concern presents any type of live entertainment which is characterized by an emphasis on specified sexual activity or specified anatomical parts at least six times in any month in any given year;

• (3) The business establishment or concern obtains a significant or substantial portion of its revenues from the sale, rental or lease of entertainment, material or merchandise characterized by an emphasis on matter depicting, describing, or relating to specified sexual activities or specified anatomical parts or advertises the availability of the same; or

• (4) The regular and substantial course of conduct of the business consists of or involves the sale, trade, display or presentation of services, products or entertainment which are characterized by an emphasis on matter depicting, describing or relating to specified sexual activities or specified anatomical parts.

"Clothing optional hotel/motel" means a non-adult hotel/motel which, in the ordinary course of business permits persons to be nude in and on those public areas of the hotel or motel property which are not visible from any public right-of-way. A clothing optional hotel shall not include any hotel or motel which provides compensation of any form or permits any person to accept compensation of any form for exposing specified anatomical parts or engaging in specified sexual activities unless the exposure of such specified anatomical parts is ancillary or incidental to the activity for which the compensation is received.

"Director" means the Finance and Treasury Director of the city of Palm Springs or the city manager's designee.

"Sexually-oriented material" means any element of sexually-oriented merchandise, or any book, periodical, magazine, photograph, drawing, sculpture, motion picture, film, video, or other written, oral or visual representation which, for purposes of sexual arousal, provides depictions

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City of Palm Springs, CA § 5.77.010

PALM SPRINGS CODE

§ 5.77.025

that are characterized by an emphasis on matter depicting, describing, or relating to specified sexual activities or specified anatomical parts.

"Sexually-oriented merchandise" means sexually oriented implements and paraphernalia, such as, but not limited to: dildos, auto sucks, sexually oriented vibrators, edible underwear, benwa balls, inflatable orifices, anatomical balloons with orifices, simulated and battery operated vaginas, and similar sexually oriented devices that are designed or marketed primarily for the stimulation of human genital organs or sado-masochistic activity.

"Specified anatomical parts" means less than completely and opaquely covered human genitals; anal region; pubic region; or the areola of the female breast.

"Specified sexual activities" means:

• (1) Human genitals in a state of sexual stimulation or arousal;

• (2) Acts of human masturbation, sexual intercourse or any sexual act involving the sex organs of one person and the mouth or anus of another;

• (3) Fondling or other erotic touching of human genitals, pubic region, or female breast;

• (4) Striptease or the removal of clothing to the point where specified anatomical parts are not opaquely covered.

• (Ord. 1511 § 2, 1995; Ord. 2082, 3/23/2023)

No adult-oriented business shall be permitted to operate, engage in, conduct or carry on business within the city unless the owner of the business first obtains a business license from the city of Palm Springs.

(Ord. 1511 § 2, 1995; Ord. 2082, 3/23/2023)

• (a) The property owner, or authorized agent of the property owner, is eligible to request a business license for an adult-oriented business.

• (b) The following information is required at the time a business license for an adult-oriented business is submitted to the Finance and Treasury Department:

  • (1) A completed business license application signed by the property owner or authorized representative;

  • (2) A nonrefundable deposit or fee as set forth by ordinance or resolution of the city council;

  • (3) A letter of justification describing the proposed project and explaining how it will comply with the findings/requirements contained in Section 5.77.030;

  • (4) Any other information as required by the city of Palm Springs.

• (Ord. 1511 § 2, 1995; Ord. 2082, 3/23/2023)

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City of Palm Springs, CA

BUSINESS REGULATIONS

§ 5.77.025

§ 5.77.025

• (a) The city shall issue a business license within 30 days following receipt of a complete application if it finds that:

  • (1) The adult-oriented business shall be located in the city's C-M, M-1, M-1-P and M-2 zoning districts.*

  • (2) The adult-oriented business shall not be located adjacent to any residential zone.*

  • (3) The adult-oriented business shall not be located within 600 feet of any lot upon which there is properly located a public park, public playground, school, day care/childcare center, or youth center or within 600 feet of any lot used by a religious institution for religious activities at least three times per week.*

  • (4) The adult-oriented business shall not be located on any property fronting upon a major or secondary thoroughfare as defined in the general plan of the city of Palm Springs. For the purpose of this chapter, a property fronts on such a road if the property and any portion of the right-of-way for the road have a contiguous boundary.

  • (5) The adult-oriented business shall not be located on property adjacent to another adultoriented business.

  • (6) The adult-oriented business complies with parking requirements as listed in Palm Springs Zoning Code Chapter 93.00.

  • (7) The adult-oriented business shall not be located completely or partially within any mobile structure or pushcart.

  • (8) The adult-oriented business shall not stage any special events, promotions, festivals, concerts or similar events which would increase the demand for parking beyond the approved number of spaces for the particular use, unless otherwise permitted under a land use permit.

  • (9) The adult-oriented business shall not conduct any massage, tattooing or acupressure on the premises or operate escort services from the premises.

  • (10) For adult entertainment establishments or adult sex venues, the applicant has submitted a security plan, developed in consultation with, and approved by, the police department, to address patron safety at such facilities.

  • (11) The adult-oriented business complies with the city's sign regulations.

  • (12) The adult-oriented business complies with the development and design requirements of the zone in which it is to be located.

  • (13) The adult-oriented business shall not display any sexually-oriented material or sexually-oriented merchandise which would be visible from any public rights-of-way.

  • (14) The adult-oriented business shall not allow admittance to any person under the age of 18 if no liquor is served, or under the age of 21 if liquor is served.

  • (15) With the exception of adult sex venues, the adult-oriented business shall not operate between the hours of two a.m. and six a.m.

  • (16) Neither the applicant, if an individual, nor any of the officers or general partners, if a

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City of Palm Springs, CA § 5.77.025

PALM SPRINGS CODE

§ 5.77.030

corporation or partnership, of the adult-oriented business has been found guilty within the past two years of a felony classified by the state as a sex-related offense and has not violated any of the provisions of an adult-oriented business license or similar permit or license in any city, county, territory or state.

• (17) The adult-oriented business complies with the outdoor lighting standards listed in Palm Springs Zoning Code Chapter 93.00.

• (18) The adult-oriented business shall comply with the noise ordinance and any mitigation measures necessary to reduce the project's noise impacts to the city's articulated noise standard.

• (19) The adult-oriented business shall comply with all building and construction standards of the California Building Code, as adopted by the city of Palm Springs, and all other federal, state and city-adopted standards for the specific use.

• (20) The following additional standards shall apply to adult sex venues:

  • a. Information shall be provided to patrons relating to the risk of contracting HIV/ AIDS and other sexually transmitted infections, and the methods of preventing such infections. Operators shall be required to partner with a local public health organization to educate patrons on sexually transmitted infections and substance abuse prevention.

  • b. Safe sex supplies, including condoms and lubricant, shall be made available for patrons.

  • c. Employees shall be trained regarding the transmission of sexually transmitted infections and the means of prevention.

  • d. Operators shall ensure that the facility is maintained in a sanitary condition. The director shall establish and publish sanitation guidelines for adult sex venue facilities, which shall be provided to the operator and serve as a basis for inspections by city staff.

  • e. Any public areas of the adult sex venue shall be screened from view of any adjacent public right-of-way utilizing a six-foot high opaque wall, fence, or hedge. For the purposes of this requirement, parking lots shall not be considered a public area.

• (b) The director shall deny the requested license if the above findings have not been made.

• The distance of separation required by Findings (a) (1), (2) and (3) shall be made using a straight line, without regard to intervening structures or objects, from the nearest property line of the property on which the adult-oriented business is, or will be located, and to the nearest property lie of the protected uses described in this subsection.

(Ord. 1511 § 2, 1995; Ord. 2031 § 7, 2020; Ord. 2082, 3/23/2023)

An adult oriented business license shall be valid for a period of one year from the date of issuance.

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City of Palm Springs, CA

BUSINESS REGULATIONS

§ 5.77.030

§ 5.77.045

(Ord. 1511 § 2, 1995; Ord. 2082, 3/23/2023)

A license for an adult-oriented business shall be renewed on a year-to-year basis provided that the permittee and the adult-oriented business continue to meet the requirements set forth in this chapter. The director or designee shall inspect the adult-oriented business as part of the renewal process to verify that the business is in conformance to the requirements of this chapter. A request for license renewal must be accompanied by a completed adult-oriented business license application. If said application conforms to the previously approved application and the adultoriented business has not changed, the license shall be renewed by the director for another year. Any change or alteration in the nature or operation of the adult-oriented business will require the renewal to be reviewed by the director. The renewal fee for an adult-oriented business license shall be established by ordinance or resolution of the city council. (Ord. 1511 § 2, 1995; Ord. 2082, 3/23/2023)

No license for an adult-oriented business may be sold, transferred or assigned by any permittee or by operation of law, to any other person, group, partnership, corporation or any other entity. Any such sale, transfer or assignment or attempted sale, transfer or assignment shall be deemed to constitute a voluntary surrender of the license and the license shall be thereafter null and void. An adult-oriented business license held by a corporation or partnership is subject to the same rules of transferability as contained above. Any change in the nature or composition of the adultoriented business from one element of an adult-oriented business to another element of an adultoriented business shall also render the license null and void. An adult-oriented business license shall only be valid for the exact location specified on the permit. (Ord. 1511 § 2, 1995; Ord. 2082, 3/23/2023)

• (a) Inspections. The permittee shall permit officers of the city of Palm Springs, the county of Riverside, and each of their authorized representatives to conduct unscheduled inspections of the premises of the adult-oriented business for the purpose of ensuring compliance with the law at any time the adult-oriented business is open for business or occupied.

• (b) Revocation Grounds. The director may revoke an adult-oriented business license when it is discovered that any of the following have occurred:

  • (1) Any of the findings contained in Section 5.77.025 above ceases to be satisfied;

  • (2) The application contains incorrect, false or misleading information;

  • (3) The applicant is convicted of any felony that is classified as a sex or sex-related offense, any violation of the city's zoning ordinance, any violation of the city's massage ordinance, or any violation of any other adult business ordinance of any other city, county, or state;

  • (4) Any person has been convicted of a sex-related offense as a result of his or her activity on the premises of the adult-oriented business.

• (c) Revocation Notice. Upon determining that the grounds for license revocation exist, the

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City of Palm Springs, CA § 5.77.045

PALM SPRINGS CODE

§ 5.77.050

• director shall furnish written notice of the proposed revocation to the permittee. Such notice shall summarize the principal reasons for the proposed revocation, shall state that the permittee may appeal the decision within 15 calendar days of the posting or the postmarked date on the notice. The notice shall be delivered both by posting the notice at the location of the adult-oriented business and by sending the same, certified mail, return receipt requested and postage prepaid, to the permittee as that name and address appears on the license. Not later than 15 calendar days after the latter of the mailing or posting of the notice, the permittee may file an appeal of the Director's determination with the city clerk. If the appeal is filed within 15 calendar days of the mailing or posting of the notice referenced above, the appeal hearing shall be provided as contained in subsection (d) of this section.

• (d) Appeal. Any person aggrieved by a decision of the director under this chapter may file an appeal in the manner provided in Chapter 2.05 of the Palm Springs Municipal Code, and the appeal shall be noticed, heard and decided as provided therein.

• (e) Reapplication After Revocation. No person, corporation, partnership or member thereof or any other entity may obtain an adult-oriented business license for a business once its license has been revoked.

• (Ord. 1511 § 2, 1995; Ord. 2082, 3/23/2023)

• (a) Every person, whether acting as an individual owner, employee of the owner, permittee, or operator or employee of the permittee, or whether acting as a mere helper for the owner, permittee employer or operator, or whether acting as a participant or worker in any way, who operates or conducts or who participates in the operation of an unpermitted adultoriented business, or who violates any provisions of this chapter, including, but not limited to, any provision of Section 5.77.025, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and shall be fined not more than $1,000.00 for each offense or imprisoned for not more than six months in the County Jail for each offense, or both. Each day the violation continues shall be regarded as a separate offense for which the full penalty may be imposed.

• (b) Any establishment operated, conducted or maintained contrary to the provisions of this chapter is unlawful and a public nuisance, and the city attorney may, in addition to or in lieu of prosecuting a criminal action hereunder, commence an action or actions, proceeding or proceedings for the abatement, removal and enjoinment thereof in the manner provided by law, and shall take such other steps and shall apply to such court or courts as may have jurisdiction to grant such relief as will abate or remove such adult-oriented business and restrain and enjoin any person from operating, conducting or maintaining such an establishment contrary to the provisions of this chapter.

• (c) Any adult-oriented business at which two or more overdoses of regulated narcotics occur within any 12-month period shall be subject to revocation of its business license, with automatic suspension of its business license pending final resolution of license revocation proceedings. Revocation of the business license may be appealed pursuant to the appeal procedure provided in Chapter 3.68 of this code.

• (d) In the event any owner, co-owner, investor or employee of any adult-oriented business is arrested or convicted of any of the following offenses: human trafficking, prostitution, facilitating prostitution (pimping), such business shall be subject to revocation of its

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City of Palm Springs, CA

BUSINESS REGULATIONS

§ 5.77.050

§ 5.77.050

business license, with automatic suspension of its business license, pending final resolution of license revocation.

• (e) In the event any arrest or conviction for the crimes listed in subdivision (d) is based on activity at an adult-oriented business, such business shall be subject to revocation of its business license, with automatic suspension of its business license, pending final resolution of license revocation. Revocation of the business license may be appealed pursuant to the appeal procedure provided in Chapter 3.68 of this code.

or conviction for the crimes listed in subdivision (d) is based on activity at an adult-oriented business, such business shall be subject to revocation of its business license, with automatic suspension of its business license, pending final resolution of license revocation. Revocation of the business license may be appealed pursuant to the appeal procedure provided in Chapter 3.68 of this code.

• (f) Any adult-oriented business shall, as a closely regulated business, during the hours of 8:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m., be subject to inspection by any peace officer, city employee or health inspector, without delay or hindrance. Any such search between the hours of 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 a.m. of the next day shall require either the consent of the operator or a judiciallyissued search warrant.

• (Ord. 1511 § 2, 1995; Ord. 2082, 3/23/2023)

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City of Palm Springs, CA

BUSINESS REGULATIONS

§ 5.78.010

§ 5.78.050