Editorial: St. Augustine should minimize adult business sites

Editorial: St. Augustine should minimize adult business sites

From Staff
Publication Date: 08/26/07
The St. Augustine City Commission on Monday will face an onslaught of residents who are against spreading adult entertainment businesses throughout the city limits.We don't blame them. We encourage them to exercise their First Amendment rights of free speech. The adult entertainment industry has used its First Amendment rights to set up these businesses. The City Commission and staff must be prepared to face the unhappy public and answer their concerns. Commissioners and staff, to their credit, have spent a lot of time working on a plan that will meet any legal tests.The City Commission originally proposed four parcels in a commercial zone on Ponce de Leon Boulevard north of State Road 16, as the only zone where adult entertainment businesses could be located. But nearby residents objected and the commission backed away from that plan. City staff was asked to revise the plan. The one proposed for action on Monday night disperses potential sites throughout commercial zones all over the city. By trying to appease a few people the city has angered many.In July, the city adopted an anti-nudity ordinance and a regulatory ordinance for the operation of such businesses. The location ordinance proposal is the last piece of the city's plan. The St. Augustine Record's Aug. 20 story about the disbursement plan and map are at http://staugustine.com/stories/082007/. The map will appear when the story link is clicked.We know why the city is hot to trot on adult business regulations. The city wants to regulate this onerous trade before it comes in again. The first two businesses in the last 20 years are gone; either out of business or outside the city's jurisdiction.The city has to have an ordinance that specifies locations, says City Manager Bill Harriss. Otherwise, the businesses will be everywhere the city has a commercial district. According to Mayor Joe Boles and Harriss everywhere could mean near the Casa Monica Hotel or in the downtown business district, for example.Courts have held that local governments cannot ban adult businesses but they can restrict them to one business entity per 6,500 residents. Harriss said the original proposal for four locations would satisfy that requirement and allow for population growth so the city is not redoing the ordinance when its population exceeds 13,500. The city's population is about 12,500 and has been for years.We recommend the city maximize the restrictions holding to three parcels, enough for a population of 19,500 people. Find locations in commercial zoning districts but don't cluster them. The plan the city adopts should respect people who live and work here and our visitors. The city has time to refine this plan because while a proposed ordinance is under discussion, an adult business cannot rush in and set up shop.
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