[HISTORY: Adopted by the Town of Ogunquit as indicated in article histories. Amendments noted where applicable.]
[Adopted effective 5-31-1989 (Title IX, Ch. 3, of the 1980 Code)]
A. 
Title. This article shall be known and may be cited as the "1989 Amusement Ordinance."
B. 
Findings and purpose. Facilities offering entertainment tend to attract large numbers of people. Congregations of large numbers of people at such facilities, particularly at facilities licensed to sell liquor, can create problems involving noise, crowding, sanitation, traffic control, law enforcement and other issues relating to the public's health, safety, and welfare and the right of citizens of and visitors to the Town to the quiet enjoyment of their lives and property. This article is required and intended to provide for the regulation of such facilities in all areas affecting the public's health, safety, and welfare which are not otherwise adequately provided for in other ordinances.
C. 
Authority. This article is enacted pursuant to the powers granted to the Town by 30-A M.R.S.A. § 3001 and 28-A M.R.S.A. § 1054.
[Amended 8-20-1991 STM]
D. 
Definitions. As used in this article, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated:
COMMERCIAL FACILITY
Any place of for-profit business offering or providing or permitting entertainment to its patrons.[1]
[Amended 6-8-2021 ATM by Art. 9]
ENTERTAINMENT
(1) 
Shall include dancing by or for patrons, any music, video games, devices, machines and any other amusement, performance, exhibition, diversion or other activity with an entertainment value, whether provided or used by patrons, independent contractors, employees or proprietors.
(2) 
Shall not include televisions or radios nor shall it include "background music," meaning music not involving live performers and not used for dancing and which music is only incidental to the primary activity offered.
LICENSEE
Includes the person to whom a license of any kind hereunder is issued and that person's agents, employees and servants.
MUNICIPAL OFFICERS
The Town of Ogunquit Select Board.
PATRON
Any patron or customer of a commercial facility licensed or required to be licensed hereunder.
[Amended 6-8-2021 ATM by Art. 9]
PERSON
Any individual, partnership, corporation or other legal entity and his or its agents, employees and servants.
VIDEO GAMES
Those electrical or mechanical devices that the public may operate as a game, entertainment, or amusement, whether or not registering a score, whether or not there is a fee for use, and includes pinball machines and other devices known as such or similar in function.
[1]
Editor's Note: The original definition of "bottle club" of the 1980 Code, which immediately preceded this definition, was repealed 6-8-2021 ATM by Art. 9.
A. 
Amusement license. No person owning or operating a commercial facility shall permit or offer any entertainment in such facility unless the owner or operator thereof has first obtained an amusement license for such facility from the Municipal Officers.
B. 
Special amusement license. A special amusement license is required for all outdoor entertainment events and for any commercial facilities which offer one-time entertainment events and which do not have a regular amusement license. Each event shall require a separate license. The Municipal Officers or their designated agent shall issue each special amusement license.
(1) 
Applications for special amusement license. Applications for a special amusement license shall be made on forms prescribed by the Municipal Officers and filed with the Town Clerk. Application shall be made at least 15 days prior to the scheduled event. The application shall include the name and address of the sponsor of the event; the name and address of the facility at which the event will be held; the number of guests expected to attend; the type of entertainment to be provided; the starting time of the event; and the duration of the event.
[Amended 11-4-2014 STM]
(2) 
Issuance of special amusement license.
(a) 
Upon receipt of a completed special amusement license application, the Municipal Officers or their designated agent shall issue a special amusement license. A special amusement license shall be valid only for the date and time specified therein. The Municipal Officers or their designated agent shall not issue any special amusement license more than 30 days in advance of the event.
(b) 
The Municipal Officers or their designated agent may issue any number of special amusement licenses. The Municipal Officers and their designated agent shall, however, have the right to refuse to issue more than three special amusement licenses to any single facility and may instead require a regular amusement license. Recipients of a special amusement license shall comply with all other applicable provisions of this article and other municipal ordinances; nothing in the special amusement license shall be construed to exempt the licensee from complying with those ordinances.
A. 
License required. No commercial facility offering entertainment shall operate unless the owner or operator thereof holds a valid amusement license for such facility issued by the municipal officers.
B. 
Noise. No licensee shall violate the provisions of any ordinance regulating noise. No licensee shall cause or permit his employees, agents, servants or performers providing entertainment to violate the provisions of any such ordinance while they are on the licensed premises or upon the real estate of which the premises is a part. No licensee shall cause or permit his patrons or customers to violate the provisions of any such ordinance while they are in the licensed premises. No licensee shall cause or permit his patrons or customers to violate the provisions of any such ordinance while they are upon the real estate of which the premises is a part, to the extent that he is able to prevent or interrupt such violation by the use of sound screening materials or by the use of supervisors or by other appropriate means.
C. 
Hours. No licensee shall offer entertainment except during the following hours:
(1) 
Licensees not permitting or offering alcoholic beverages for consumption on the premises: 8:00 a.m. to 1:00 a.m., except to 2:00 a.m. on New Year's.
(2) 
Licensees permitting or offering alcoholic beverages for consumption on the premises: 12:00 noon to 1:00 a.m., except to 2:00 a.m. on New Year's.
D. 
Number of patrons. No licensee shall cause or permit the number of patrons at the licensed premises, at any time, to exceed the capacity or occupant load as determined by the Ogunquit Fire Chief pursuant to the National Fire Protection Association Life Safety Code, which capacity shall be set forth on the license itself. The occupant load for licensed premises wherein alcoholic beverages are served shall be the occupant load permitted by the code for dining.
[Amended 6-8-2021 ATM by Art. 9]
E. 
Term of license. An amusement license shall expire on May 31 of the year following its issuance.
F. 
Supervisors of video games. Operators of commercial facilities and/or amusement centers as defined in Chapter 225, Zoning, shall provide one supervisor for between four and 10 devices and two supervisors for between 11 and 20 devices, with a maximum of 20. The operator shall provide an exclusive floor area of 60 square feet for each device. Operators of amusement centers shall not sell or vend or permit the sale, vending or consumption of food or drink on the licensed premises. A supervisor shall be an employee whose only duties shall be to provide direct supervision in accordance with the provisions of this subsection.
G. 
Compliance with other municipal ordinances or regulations and state law. No license shall be issued if the licensed premises is in violation of any other municipal ordinance or regulation or state law regulations.
H. 
Additional conditions. In granting any amusement license, the Municipal Officers shall impose such further reasonable restrictions and conditions as are deemed appropriate in any particular case to best safeguard the public's health, safety, and welfare and the right of the citizens to quiet enjoyment of their life and property, including but not limited to requiring bonds; requiring licensees to pay for the costs of noise level monitoring; and requiring licensees to provide for and/or pay for an appropriate number of Town police officers or special employees to be present inside or outside the licensee's premises at designated times to ensure compliance with state law and Town ordinances and regulations.
[Amended 6-8-2021 ATM by Art. 9]
A. 
Application. Applications for amusement licenses shall be on forms prescribed by the Municipal Officers and filed with the Town Clerk. Applications shall state the name of the applicant; all aliases; the applicant's residence address; the name of the business to be conducted; the business address; the precise location of the business; the nature of the business; the precise nature and form of the entertainment; whether the applicant has ever had a license to conduct that business either denied or revoked and, if so, the circumstances of such denial or revocation; whether the applicant, including all partners, directors, corporate officers and stockholders of a closely held corporation, has ever been convicted of a felony and, if so, the circumstances of such conviction; and the occupant load as established by the Ogunquit Fire Chief. If the applicant is other than an individual, the applicant shall describe its legal structure and, in the case of a partnership, shall state, for each partner, all of the information required for individuals. If the applicant is a corporation, the applicant shall state the name, all aliases, and the residential and business addresses of all directors and officers. All closely held corporations must also include a list of all the stockholders in the corporation.
(1) 
All applications shall be accompanied by two scale drawings at a scale of one inch to 10 feet depicting the floors of the building in which the entertainment is to be located, all entrances and exits and all areas open to patrons, indicating in each area the use made by patrons and indicating the floors and areas for which the applicant seeks a license.
(2) 
Applicants for entertainment by video games shall present scale floor plans depicting the location and floor area of these devices and the location of supervisors. The applicant shall also list the machines by function and serial number.
(3) 
Applicants for entertainment which includes patron dancing shall present scale floor plans depicting the location and size of the dance floor.
B. 
Completed application. Upon filing the application with the Town Clerk, together with the appropriate costs, the Clerk shall forward a notice of inspection to the Code Enforcement Officer/Fire Chief. The application shall be considered complete when the Town Clerk receives all information required above, all costs have been paid and the Municipal Officers have received written reports from the Code Enforcement Officer, Police Chief and Fire Chief stating that the premises is in compliance with all applicable codes and ordinances of the Town of Ogunquit. The applicant shall also provide any additional information as may be determined to be necessary by the Municipal Officers in processing and considering the application. All applications shall be signed by the principal proprietor of the business and by the property owner if the premises is not owned by the proprietor.
C. 
Costs. The applicant shall pay for all costs associated with the public hearing and advertisement thereof, which costs shall be determined by the Select Board.
[Amended 4-5-2003 ATM]
A. 
Public hearing. The Municipal Officers shall consider an application within 30 days of receipt of a completed application. Prior to granting a license and after giving notice to the public and the applicant, the Municipal Officers may hold a public hearing on the application, at which the testimony of the applicant and that of any interested members of the public shall be taken. The Municipal Officers shall render a decision within 15 days from the date of decision.
[Amended 11-2-2021 STM by Art. 5]
B. 
Decision. The applicant shall be notified, in writing, of the Municipal Officers' decision, should the application be denied, no later than 15 days from the date of the decision. A denial shall contain the reasons for disapproving an application. The Municipal Officers shall deny a license if they find that issuance of the license shall be detrimental to the public health, safety, or welfare, or that the licensing or operation of the premises would or would be likely to violate a state law or Town ordinance or regulation or that the premises to be licensed is in violation of a state law or Town ordinance or regulation.
C. 
Reapplication. The applicant may not reapply for a license within 30 days after the application has been denied.
A. 
By applying for or accepting a license hereunder, the applicant and licensee thereby authorize any Town official to inspect the premises licensed or to be licensed for entertainment.
B. 
Inspection shall be for the purpose of determining the compliance with state laws and all Town ordinances and regulations. Inspection may occur at any reasonable time.
C. 
It shall be a violation of this article if a licensee refuses or interferes with an inspection.
[Amended 6-8-2021 ATM by Art. 9]
After notice to interested parties and a public hearing, the Municipal Officers may suspend or revoke any amusement license issued by authority of this article. Grounds for such action shall include prior license suspension or revocation, misleading or falsification of information on applications or violations of state law or this article or any other Town ordinance or regulation, so that the public health, safety, and welfare have been adversely affected by entertainment offered or permitted by a licensee. In revoking any license, the Municipal Officers may prohibit a licensee or its operators or its principals from reapplying for a new license for such term as they deem appropriate and reasonable under the circumstances.
[Amended 8-20-1991 STM; 6-8-2021 ATM by Art. 9]
Any applicant who has been denied a license or any licensee whose license has been suspended or revoked may, within 30 days of that denial, suspension, or revocation, appeal that decision. Appeals from the decision of the Code Enforcement Officer shall be to the Municipal Officers and appeals from the decision of the Municipal Officers shall be to the Board of Appeals in accordance with the provisions of 28-A M.R.S.A. § 1054(8) and 30-A M.R.S.A. § 2691(4).
The Municipal Officers are authorized, after public notice and hearing, to establish regulations governing the issuance of amusement licenses, classes of licenses, the entertainment permitted under each class and other limitations on these activities required to protect the public's health, safety and welfare. These regulations may specifically determine the location and size of licensed premises, the facilities that may be required for the permitted activities on these premises, the maximum number of people who may occupy those premises at one time, and the hours during which the activities are permitted. The regulations shall be in addition to and no less stringent than this article.
The Town's regular and special police officers and Code Enforcement Officer are authorized to enforce the provisions of this article and regulations thereunder. Violators of this article shall be subject to civil penalties. Violators of the noise provisions of this article may also be subject to criminal penalties under Chapter 129, Noise, of this Code.
Whoever violates any of the provisions of this article shall be punished by a civil penalty of not less than $100 nor more than $1,000 for each such violation. Each day of violation and each occurrence shall constitute a separate and distinct offense. Civil penalties shall inure to the benefit of the Town. Prosecutions for violation of this article shall not prevent prosecutions for violations of other ordinances.
The invalidity of any provision of this article shall not invalidate any other provisions.
This article shall become effective May 31, 1989.
This article shall repeal and replace the provisions of Chapter 3A, Amusement, and Subchapter 3B, 1982 Special Amusement Ordinance.
The provisions of the sections of this article shall apply to all persons currently licensed under Title IX, Subchapter 3B, 1982 Special Amusement Ordinance.
[Adopted as Title IX, Ch. 4, of the 1980 Code]
The purpose of this article is to prohibit any commercial enterprise from presenting or engaging in any obscene exhibitions for profit. It is not intended to suppress or inhibit the free exchange of ideas or artistic expression. The Town has enacted this article for the purpose of promoting and protecting the general welfare, public safety, public order and morals.
As used in this article, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated:
COMMERCIAL ENTERPRISE
Any business, corporation, association or natural person established for pecuniary gain other than a theater.
ENGAGE
To solicit, produce, direct, finance, physically partake in, compensate others for, further the interest of, or be otherwise involved with the proscribed conduct.
EXHIBITION
Any aural, visual or tactile performance, dramatization, show or display which includes any amount of human, animal, or animated conduct, whether presented live or by way of mechanical reproduction, sound recording, audio-visual cassette or tape, silhouette depiction or by any other means.
OBSCENE
Any conduct of a sexual nature which:
A. 
To the average individual applying contemporary community standards, considered as a whole, appeals to the prurient interests.
B. 
Presents in a patently offensive manner actual or simulated ultimate sexual acts, sodomy, bestiality, excretory functions, masturbation, direct physical stimulation of unclothed genitals, flagellation or torture in context of ultimate sexual acts, or lewd exhibition of the human male or female genitals, pubic area, buttocks or the female breast below the top of the nipple.
C. 
Considered as whole, lacks serious literary, artistic, political or scientific value.
PRESENT
To show, reveal, display or expose to any person.
THEATER
A. 
Any building or hall designed primarily for showing motion pictures, having a permanent movie screen and permanently fixed seats arranged in such fashion as to allow spectators an unobstructed view of the screen.
B. 
An open-air theater designed primarily for showing motion pictures, having a permanent movie screen and permanent devices for broadcasting movie soundtracks in motor vehicles.
C. 
Any playhouse, hall or similar structure designed primarily for legitimate artistic expression.
A. 
It shall be unlawful for any commercial enterprise to present for profit any obscene exhibition within the Town of Ogunquit.
B. 
It shall be unlawful for any commercial enterprise to engage in any obscene exhibitions for profit within the Town of Ogunquit.
C. 
It shall be unlawful for any commercial enterprise to solicit, permit, promote, or assist any commercial enterprise or person to present or engage in any obscene exhibitions within the Town of Ogunquit.
This article is not intended to regulate any conduct expressly regulated by existing state statute.
A. 
Any conduct made unlawful by this article and any violation of this article shall be punishable by a fine not to exceed $1,000 for each offense. Each day that such unlawful act or violation continues shall be considered a separate offense. Fines collected for violation of this article shall be recovered for the use of the Town of Ogunquit.
B. 
In addition to any other penalty by law, the commission of acts prohibited by this article shall constitute a nuisance and may be abated by the Town seeking an injunction to prohibit further and continued violations.
If any section, subsection, sentence, clause or phrase of this article is for any reason held to be unconstitutional or invalid, such decision shall not affect the validity of the remaining portions of this article.