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Zoning Bulletin November 25, 2014 I Volume 8 1 Issue 22 <br />Case Note: <br />In its decision, the court gave examples of when a plaintiff need not await a final deci- <br />sion to challenge a land -use decision: (1) when a zoning policy is discriminatory on its <br />face; or (2) when there is manipulation of a zoning process out of discriminatory <br />animus to avoid a final decision. In those cases, said the court, "pursuit of a further <br />administrative decision would do nothing to further define [the] injury," and the <br />"claim should not be subject to the application of the [final -decision] ripeness test." <br />First Amendment—Zoning bylaws <br />restrict size, height, and operating <br />hours ofadult-entertainment <br />establishments <br />Landowner challenges zoning bylaws as <br />unconstitutional, in violation of free speech rights <br />under the First Amendment <br />Citation: Showtime Entertainment, LLC v. Town of Mendon, 2014 WL <br />5028046 (1st Cir. 2014) <br />The First Circuit has jurisdiction over Maine, Massachusetts, New <br />Hampshire,_ Puerto Rico, and Rhode Island. -- <br />FIRST CIRCUIT (MASSACHUSETTS) (10/08/14)—This case addressed <br />the issue of whether a town's zoning bylaws relating to size, height, and <br />operating hours of adult -entertainment establishments, as well as a ban on sale <br />and consumption alcohol at such establishments, constituted impermissible <br />prior restraint on freedom of expression. <br />The Background/Facts: In May 2008, the Town of Mendon (the "Town") <br />amended its zoning bylaws. Among other things, the amendments created an <br />Adult -Entertainment Overlay District, which limited the location of any adult - <br />entertainment business to four specific parcels of land within the town limits. <br />Upon citizens' petition, Town residents also later voted to approve additional <br />bylaws, enacting additional zoning restrictions, restricting the following at all <br />adult entertainment businesses: (1) the maximum size and height allowances <br />of buildings; and (2) the operating hours. The stated purposes of the zoning <br />bylaws were to: protect the Town's "historically rural atmosphere"; and sup- <br />port traffic safety. <br />Showtime Entertainment, LLC ("Showtime") owned one of the few parcels <br />of land within the town limits zoned for adult entertainment. In June 2008, <br />Showtime applied to the Town for a license to operate an adult entertainment <br />business (presenting live nude dancing) on a parcel of land within the Adult - <br />Entertainment Overlay District. <br />2014 Thomson Reuters 5 <br />