[HISTORY: Adopted by the Council of the City
of Meriden 10-7-1963 as Ch. 4 of the 1963 Code. Amendments noted where applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Fire prevention — See Ch. 107.
Signs and posters — See Ch. 174.
Zoning — See Ch. 213.
STATUTORY REFERENCES
Authority to legislate — See C.G.S. § 21-6.
No person shall display or produce publicly,
in the City, to be seen, heard or attended, any sport; public amusement;
dance; musical, operatic, dramatic, theatrical or pictorial performance;
circus or other exhibition; or any public assemblage for any purpose
whatsoever which is held or conducted wholly or partly under a tent
or other temporary structure or advertise the same by any illustrated
bill, poster, hanger or display card, without a license so to do,
which license shall be issued by the Chief of Police.
Every licensee, as a condition of obtaining
the license required by this chapter, shall, when applying therefor,
provide facilities for the Chief of Police to enter and inspect his
place of amusement and view the exhibition or performances conducted
therein at any time while such license is in force and effect.
The Chief of Police may revoke any license issued
under the provisions of this chapter at any time for cause, and the
operations conducted thereunder shall cease immediately upon such
revocation and shall not be resumed until such license is reinstated.
[Amended 9-15-1980]
Before any license required under this chapter
is issued for any performance to which admission is obtained by the
payment of money or the delivery of any valuable thing, or by any
ticket or voucher obtained for money or any valuable thing, the applicant
shall pay for such license a fee determined by the City Council which
shall be uniform as to activities falling within the following classifications
and not in excess of the amounts provided herein therefor:
A.
Tent performances. Circuses, wild west shows and other
outdoor and tent performances of an itinerant or transient character,
except carnivals: $150 per day.
B.
Theaters. Theaters, for all performances that may
be held in them, as follows:
(1)
Any theater having a seating capacity of 1,000 persons
or more and which regularly gives performances during the year for
seven consecutive days in any week: $200 per year.
(2)
Any theater having a seating capacity of fewer than
1,000 persons and more than 500 persons and which regularly gives
performances during the year for seven consecutive days in any week:
$150 per year.
(3)
Any theater having a seating capacity of 500 persons
or fewer and which regularly gives performances during the year for
seven consecutive days in any week: $100 per year.
(4)
Any theater which gives performances for less than
seven consecutive days in any week: $100 per year.
(5)
Any theater which gives fewer than 40 performances
per year: $50 per year.
C.
Athletic contests. Athletic contests, baseball games,
football games, hockey games and basketball games, for each game or
contest: $1, provided that no fee shall be paid in any case where
such athletic contest or game is conducted or played by a regularly
organized team of an educational institution incorporated under the
laws of the state on the premises of such institution or of a high
school or public school of the City.
D.
Athletic halls. Athletic halls used exclusively for
holding athletic games, contests and exhibitions: $75 per year.
F.
Other. All other performances, public shows and exhibitions,
other than for charitable or benevolent purposes: $2 per day.
The Chief of Police shall keep a record, in
a book provided for that purpose, of all licenses issued by him under
the provisions of this chapter, containing the names of the persons
licensed and the date of revocation of any license revoked.
No person owning or operating any public hall
in the City shall permit such hall to be used for the purpose of giving
any performance or exhibition for which a license is required under
this chapter unless he has first received from the owner, operator
or agent of the owner or operator of such performance or exhibition
a copy of the license issued therefor. Every place in the City in
which any performance or exhibition for which a license is required
under this chapter is given or held shall be deemed a public hall
within the meaning of this section.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: Former § 99-7, Police
required to be in attendance, which immediately followed this section,
as amended 9-15-1980, was repealed 11-2-1981.
Any public performance, exhibition, sport or
other form of amusement or entertainment which is authorized to be
held on Sunday under provisions of the General Statutes may be held
in the City on that day, provided that any such activity shall be
held or conducted in accordance with the provisions of this Code and
any General Statutes relating thereto.
[Amended 2-20-1990]
It shall be unlawful for any person to exhibit,
open, maintain or operate performances or shows commonly known as
"carnivals" anywhere in the City, provided that this section shall
not apply to any amateur show, bazaar, festival or other similar amusement
conducted for the benefit of a church or religious or educational
institution, or by a nonprofit organization which donates all profits
to a charitable cause, whether or not it is carried on in a hall used
occasionally for such affairs and located in an edifice maintained
in connection with or as a part of the religious or educational work
of such organization or upon the grounds thereof.
No person in the City shall act in, exhibit,
show or perform in, or cause to be acted in, shown or performed, or
be in any manner concerned in the acting in, exhibition, showing or
performance of, any indecent, immoral, indecorous or improper dance,
play, farce, opera, public exhibition, show, entertainment or performance
whatsoever.
