[HISTORY: Adopted by the Town of Putnam 4-19-1999 STM. Amendments
noted where applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Massage parlors — See Ch. 230.
The Town Meeting of the Town of Putnam, Connecticut finds:
A.
Should adult-oriented establishments locate in the Town of Putnam,
they will require special supervision from the Town's public
safety agencies in order to protect and preserve the health, safety
and welfare of the patrons of such establishments, as well as the
health, safety and welfare of the Town's citizens.
B.
Statistics and studies performed by a substantial number of cities
and towns in the United States indicate that:
(1)
Large numbers of persons, primarily male, frequent such adult-oriented
establishments, especially those which provide closed booths, cubicles,
studios and rooms for the private viewing of so-called "adult" motion
pictures and/or videotapes and/or live entertainment; and
(2)
Such closed booths, cubicles, studios and rooms have been used by
patrons, clients or customers of such adult-oriented establishments
for the purpose of engaging in certain sexual acts; and
(3)
Male and female prostitutes have been known to frequent such establishments
in order to provide sex for hire to the patrons, clients or customers
of such establishments within such booths, cubicles and rooms; and
(4)
Doors, curtains, blinds and/or other closures installed in or on
the entrances and/or exits of such booths, cubicles, studios, and
rooms which are closed while such booths, cubicles, studios and rooms
are in use encourage patrons using such booths, cubicles, studios
and rooms to engage in sexual acts therein with prostitutes or others,
thereby promoting and encouraging prostitution and the commission
of sexual acts which cause blood, semen and urine to be deposited
on the floors and/or walls of such booths, cubicles, studios and rooms,
which deposits could prove detrimental to the health and safety of
other persons who may come into contact with such deposits; and
(5)
The reasonable regulation and supervision of such adult-oriented
establishments tends to discourage such sexual acts and prostitution,
and thereby promotes the health, safety and welfare of the patrons,
clients and customers of such establishments.
C.
The unregulated operation of adult-oriented establishments, including, without limitation, those specifically cited Subsection A hereof, would be detrimental to the general welfare, health and safety of the citizens of Putnam.
D.
The Constitution and the laws of the State of Connecticut grant to
the Town powers, especially police power, to enact reasonable legislation
and measures to regulate and supervise adult-oriented establishments
as hereinafter defined in order to protect the public health, safety
and welfare.
E.
It is not the intent of the Town Meeting, in enacting this chapter,
to deny to any person rights to speech protected by the United States
and/or State Constitutions, nor is it the intent of the Town Meeting
to impose any additional limitations or restrictions on the contents
of any communicative materials, including sexually oriented films,
videotapes, books and/or other materials. Further, by enacting this
chapter, the Town Meeting does not intend to deny or restrict the
rights of any adult to obtain and/or view any sexually oriented materials
protected by the United States and/or State Constitutions, nor does
it intend to restrict or deny any constitutionally protected rights
that distributors or exhibitors of such sexually oriented materials
may have to sell, distribute or exhibit such materials.
For the purpose of this chapter, the words and phrases used
herein shall have the following meanings, unless otherwise clearly
indicated by the context:
An establishment having a substantial or significant portion
of its stock and trade in books, films, videocassettes, sexual aids,
toys, novelties, or magazines and other periodicals which are distinguished
or characterized by their emphasis on matter depicting, describing
or relating to specified sexual activities or specified anatomical
areas as defined below, and may, in conjunction therewith, have facilities
for the presentation of adult entertainment, as defined below, and
including adult-oriented films, movies or live entertainment, for
observation by patrons therein.
Any exhibition of any adult-oriented motion pictures, live
performance, display or dance of any type, which has as a significant
or substantial portion of such performance any actual or simulated
performance of specified sexual activities or exhibition and viewing
of specified anatomical areas, removal of articles of clothing or
appearing unclothed, pantomime, modeling, or any other personal services
offered customers.
An enclosed building with a capacity of fewer than 50 persons
regularly used for presenting material distinguished or characterized
by an emphasis on matter depicting, describing or relating to specified
sexual activities or specified anatomical areas, as defined below,
for observation by patrons therein.
An enclosed building with a capacity of 50 or more persons
regularly used for presenting material distinguished or characterized
by an emphasis on matter depicting, describing or relating to specified
sexual activities or specified anatomical areas, as defined below,
for observation by patrons therein.
Includes, without limitation, adult bookstores, adult motion-picture
theaters, adult mini-motion-picture theaters and further means any
premises to which the public, patrons or members are invited or admitted
and which are so physically arranged as to provide booths, cubicles,
rooms, studios, compartments or stalls separate from the common areas
of the premises for the purpose of viewing adult-oriented motion pictures,
or any premises wherein an entertainer provides adult entertainment
to a member of the public, a patron or a member, when such adult entertainment
is held, conducted, operated or maintained for a profit, direct or
indirect. An adult-oriented establishment further includes, without
limitation, any adult entertainment studio or any premises that are
physically arranged and used as such, whether advertised or represented
as an adult entertainment studio, rap studio, exotic dance studio,
encounter studio, sensitivity studio, modeling studio, or any other
term of like import.
Any and all persons, including independent contractors, who
work in or at or render any services directly related to the operation
of an adult-oriented establishment.
Any person who provides entertainment within an adult-oriented
establishment as defined in this section, whether or not a fee is
charged or accepted for entertainment and whether or not entertainment
is provided as an employee or an independent contractor.
An employee of the Town of Putnam's Building or Zoning
Department, the Northeast District Department of Health or within
the Special Services District, the Police Department.
Refers to a person under the age of 18 years.
Any person, partnership or corporation operating, conducting
or maintaining an adult-oriented establishment.
As used in these regulations, is not intended to include
any medical publications or films or bona fide education publication
or films, nor does it include any art or photography publications
which devote at least 25% of the lineage of each issue to articles
and advertisement dealing with subjects of art or photography; nor
does this definition apply to any news periodical which reports or
describes current events and which, from time to time, publishes photographs
of nude or seminude persons in connection with the dissemination of
the news; nor does this definition apply to publications or films
which describe and report different cultures and which, from time
to time, publish or show photographs or depictions of nude or seminude
persons when describing cultures in which nudity or seminudity is
indigenous to the population.
The Town Meeting of the Town of Putnam, Connecticut.
The Town of Putnam Zoning Enforcement Officer.
A.
No operator or employee of an adult-oriented establishment shall
allow or permit any minor to loiter in any part of such establishment,
including parking lots immediately adjacent to such establishment
used by patrons of such adult-oriented establishment.
B.
Every adult-oriented establishment doing business in the Town on
or after May 1, 1999, shall be well-lighted at all times and be physically
arranged in such a manner that the entire interior portion of the
booths, cubicles, rooms or stalls, wherein adult entertainment is
provided, shall be clearly visible from the common areas of the premises.
Visibility into such booths, cubicles, rooms or stalls shall not be
blocked or obscured by doors, curtains, partitions, drapes, or any
other obstruction whatsoever. It shall be unlawful to install enclosed
booths, cubicles, rooms or stalls within adult-oriented establishments
for whatever purpose, but especially for the purpose of providing
for the secluded viewing of adult-oriented motion pictures, or other
types of adult-oriented entertainment.
C.
On or after May 1, 1999, the operator of each adult-oriented establishment
shall be responsible for and shall provide that any room or other
area used for the purpose of viewing adult-oriented motion pictures
or other types of live adult entertainment shall be well-lighted and
readily accessible at all times and shall be continuously open to
view in its entirety. The premises shall be equipped with overhead
lighting fixtures of sufficient intensity to illuminate every place
to which patrons are permitted access at an illumination of not less
than one footcandle as measured at the floor level. It shall be the
duty of the operator and its agents to ensure that the illumination
described above is maintained at all times that any patron is present
in the premises.
D.
Every act or omission by an employee constituting a violation of
the provisions of this chapter shall be deemed the act or omission
of the operator if such act or omission occurs either with the authorization,
knowledge or approval of the operator, or as a result of the operator's
negligent failure to supervise the employee's conduct, and the
operator shall be punishable for such act or omission in the same
manner as if the operator committed the act or caused the omission.
E.
An operator shall be responsible for the conduct of all employees
while on the licensee's premises, and any act or omission of
any employee constituting a violation of the provisions of this chapter
shall be deemed the act or omission of the operator for purposes of
determining whether the operator shall be subject to the penalties
imposed by this chapter.
F.
All adult-oriented establishments shall be open to inspection at
all reasonable times by a Putnam inspector.
A.
Any person, partnership or corporation who or which is found to have
violated this chapter shall be fined a definite sum not exceeding
$100 for each such violation.
B.
Each violation of this chapter shall be considered a separate offense,
and any violation continuing for more than one hour of time shall
be considered a separate offense for each hour of violation.
