[HISTORY: Adopted by the Township Council
of the Township of Stafford 9-7-1999 by Ord. No. 99-60.[1] Amendments noted where applicable.]
[1]
Editor's Note: Former Ch. 176, Signs, Temporary, adopted 7-7-1992
by Ord. No. 92-44, was repealed 12-20-1994 by Ord. No. 94-114.
A.
Statutory authorization. It is the responsibility
of the local government to adopt regulations designed to promote the
public health, safety and general welfare. Such power has been delegated
to the municipalities from the legislature of the State of New Jersey.
The Township Council of the Township of Stafford, in order to better
promote the public health, safety and general welfare of its citizens,
does ordain as follows.
B.
Findings of fact.
[Amended 3-16-2004 by Ord. No. 2004-23]
(1)
In order to promote the public health, safety and
general welfare of its citizens, the Township of Stafford wishes to
promulgate reasonable time, place and manner regulations with respect
to the sale, distribution, rental or exhibition of obscene material
as defined in N.J.S.A. 2C:34-2.
C.
Purposes and objectives. It is the purpose of this
chapter to regulate sexually oriented businesses so as to minimize
and control the adverse effects recognized in the preceding section
and to promote the public health, safety and general welfare of the
citizens of the Township of Stafford. The Township Council of the
Township of Stafford finds that the secondary effects of adult entertainment
establishments, as established through the reports and studies of
other cities and municipalities with the appropriate resources to
conduct the same, is deleterious and inimical to health, safety and
general welfare of the residents of the municipality. It is not the
purpose of this chapter to restrict or deny access by adults to sexually
oriented material protected by the First Amendment nor will this chapter
have the effect of restricting or denying such access.
For the purposes of this chapter, the terms
used within this chapter shall be defined as follows:
Any place to which the public is permitted or invited wherein
coin-operated or slug-operated or electronically, electrically or
mechanically controlled still or image-producing devices are maintained
to show images to one person per machine at any one time and where
the images displayed are distinguished or characterized by the depicting
or describing of specified sexual activities or specified anatomical
areas.
A commercial establishment which as one of its business purposes
offers for sale or for rental for any form of consideration any of
the following:
[Amended 3-16-2004 by Ord. No. 2004-23]
Books, magazines, periodicals or other printed
material or photographs, films, motion pictures and videocassette
or video reproduction, slides or other visual representations which
depict or describe specified sexual activities or specified anatomical
areas.
Instruments, devices or paraphernalia which
are designed for use in connection with specified sexual activities.
A bar, restaurant or other commercial establishment, whether
or not same is licensed to sell alcoholic beverages for on-premises
consumption, which regularly features:
[Amended 5-2-2006 by Ord. No. 2006-35]
Persons who appear in a state of nudity; or
Live performances which are characterized by
the exposure of specified anatomical areas or by sexual conduct or
by specified sexual activities; or
Films, motion pictures, videocassettes, compact
disks, slides or other photographic reproductions which are characterized
by the depiction or description of specified sexual activities, sexual
conduct or specified anatomical areas.
A hotel, motel or similar commercial establishment which
offers accommodations to the public for any form of consideration
and which:
Provides patrons with closed-circuit television
transmissions, films, motion pictures, videocassettes, slides or other
photographic reproductions which are characterized by the depiction
or description of specified sexual activities or specified anatomical
areas and has a sign visible from a public right-of-way which advertises
the availability of this adult-type of photographic reproductions;
Offers a sleeping room for rent for a period
of time that is less than 10 hours; or
Allows a tenant or occupant of a sleeping room
to subrent the room for a period of time that is less than 10 hours.
A commercial establishment where, for any form of consideration,
films, motion pictures, videocassette, slides or similar photographic
reproductions are regularly shown which are characterized by the depiction
or description of specified sexual activities or specified anatomical
areas. Adult motion-picture theaters shall meet the seating criteria
established for adult theaters.
A theater, concert hall, auditorium or similar commercial
establishment which regularly features persons who appear in a state
of nudity or live performances which are characterized by the exposure
of specified anatomical areas or by specified sexual activities. Seating
shall be provided in a design consistent with traditional movie theaters.
All sitting areas shall be visible and unobstructed.
The exhibition to the senses of another person for valuable
consideration, whether the valuable consideration is paid by the recipient
of the exhibition or by another and whether the exhibition occurs
at the exhibitor's place of business or elsewhere.
The appearance of a human bare buttock, anus, male genitals,
female genitals or female breasts.
The definition of obscene materials set forth in N.J.S.A.
2C:34-2, as the same shall be from time to time amended or supplemented,
as well as in accordance with and not more strictly than judicial
interpretations thereof pursuant to the Constitutions of the United
States and of the State of New Jersey finally concluded in courts
of jurisdiction sufficient to render decisions on constitutional questions
of general application.
An individual, proprietorship, partnership, corporation,
association or other legal entity.
An adult arcade, adult bookstore or adult video store, adult
cabaret, adult motel, adult motion-picture theater or adult theater.
Includes any of the following:
A.
Sexually oriented businesses shall only be located on a county road within the Local Business (LB) Zone in accordance with the provisions set forth within § 211-26E of the Township Code of the Township of Stafford.
B.
It shall be a violation of this chapter if a person
operates or causes to operate or allows to be operated a sexually
oriented business:
(1)
Within 1,000 feet of a place of worship.
(2)
Within 1,000 feet of a school, whether public or private,
or within 1,000 feet of any school bus stop.
(3)
Within 1,000 feet of any other sexually oriented business.
(4)
Within 1,000 feet of any residential use or zone.
(5)
Within 1,000 feet of any public park or playground.
(6)
Within 1,000 feet of a hospital.
[Added 3-16-2004 by Ord. No. 2004-23]
(7)
Within 1,000 feet of a child-care center.
[Added 3-16-2004 by Ord. No. 2004-23]
C.
Measurements shall be made in a straight line, without
regard to intervening structures or objects, from the nearest portion
of the building or structure used as a part of the premises where
a sexually oriented business is conducted to the nearest property
line of the premises of a place of worship, a school, a boundary of
a residential district, a public park or playground, a lot devoted
to residential use or a school bus stop.
D.
A sexually oriented business lawfully operating as
a conforming use is not rendered a nonconforming use by the location,
subsequent to the establishment of the sexually oriented business,
of a place of worship, school, public area, residential district or
residential lot within 1,000 feet of the sexually oriented business.
E.
Sexually oriented businesses shall conform to design
standards and development requirements established through the ordinances
of the Township of Stafford.
F.
No person under the age of 18 years shall be permitted
on the premises of a sexually oriented business for any purpose.
G.
No display visible from the exterior of the sexually
oriented business shall contain material of a sexually oriented nature.
Every sexually oriented business located in
the Township of Stafford shall be surrounded by a perimeter buffer
of at least 50 feet in width of plantings, fence, or other physical
divider along the outside of the perimeter sufficient to impede the
view of the interior of the premises in which the business is located.
A.
Any person violating any provision of this chapter,
upon conviction, is punishable by a fine not to exceed $1,000, or
a term of imprisonment not to exceed 90 days or by community service
of not more than 90 days, or any combination of fine, imprisonment
and community service, as determined in the discretion of the Municipal
Court Judge. In no event shall any person violating this chapter,
upon conviction, receive a final fine below the amount of $100.
