Agenda - Planning Commission - 02/05/2004

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~,00.~ Page 5 Z.B. ~ December I0, '~ "-- The Pack Shack Inc. sued, arguing the new ordinance was unconstitutional. The clourt ruled in favor of the county. The Pack Shack appealed. DECISION: Reversed. The ordinance was unconstitutional. Eken if one council member's stated motive was to shut a business down, a · single legislator's motive was insufficient to invalidate the ordinance. t~owever, the disclosure requirements in the license-application were not necessary to achieve the county's interest in combating the adverse impacts of adult ibusinesses. Idf~ orrnation about a corporation's agent, and its directors and officers, would' more ,,than adequately serve the county's legitimate interest in knowing who actuMly runs the adult business. There was no relevant correlation between infori~nation about every person with a financial interest in the business and the coUniy's alleged purpose of dispersing adult businesses tO limit the associated adverse secondary impact of such businesses. Tb~e licensing scheme required the applicant to list every "naturM person" who had a "financial interest" in the property. If the business rented the prop- erty eom a corporation, this would seem to require listing every stockholder of the lahdlord corporation. If there was a mortgage, the ordinance could be inter- prete~t to require extensive information about the mortgagee corporation. The amount of disclosure necessary would ultimately depend on the jud~m-nent of the aqtministrative official reviewing the application. Apart from the fact com- pelle~t disclosure could have a chilling effect on protected speech, the exten- sive ,disclosure requirement was an onerous and unnecessary burden on the permit process. Cita~on: The Pack Shack Inc. v. Howard County, Court of Appeals of Maryland, No. 5,5, September Term, 2001 (2003), see ajso: Lady J. Lingerie Inc. v. City of Jacksonville, 176 F..3d 1358 (t999). see also: Pleasureland Museum Inc. v. Beutter, 288 F..3d 988 (2002). Adult Entertainment -- New ordinance expands del'tuitions 60/40~ businesses allowed under oM law effected NEW YORK (09/09/03) -- For the People Theatres of N.Y. Inc. owned a the- atre and a, video store whose stock included videos and movies containing adult mate}isls. About 40 percent of its business was adult-related. Under the prior laW, km "adult establishment" was a commercial establishment where a sub, stanttal portion of the business was adult-related. Consequently, the law al- [owed "60/40" establishments, where the adult portion of the business was not greater than the non-adult portion. The city passed zoning amendments that redefined "adult establishment" as -a~ commercial establishment which is or includes an adULt bookstore, adult eafiag or drinking establishment, adult theater, or other a~tult commercial 137