As used in this article, unless the context requires otherwise, the
following terms shall have the following meanings:
DANCING
Shall not mean or include exhibitions or performances in which the
persons paying for admission do not participate.
HOME
Includes only such buildings as are used exclusively for private
dwelling purposes.
PRIVATE DANCE
Includes any dance given at any home or any dance given by permanently
organized clubs, societies or corporations, where the attendance is restricted
to the members of the society, club or corporation and the guests of the society,
club or corporation admitted by invitation only and from which guests no fee
or payment or token of any kind is or will be received or any dance the proceeds
of which are to be used exclusively for religious, benevolent or charitable
purposes.
PUBLIC DANCE
Includes any dance or ball to which admission may be had by the payment
of a fee or by the purchase, possession or presentation of a ticket or token
obtained for money or other valuable thing or in which a charge is made for
the caring of clothing or other property or any other dance or any party where
dancing is held before or after a program of some other nature than dancing
to which any of the public generally may gain admission with or without the
payment of a fee.
PUBLIC DANCE HALL
Includes any room, place or space in which a public dance may be
held, or any hall or academy in which classes in dancing are held or instruction
in dancing given for hire.
All public dance halls shall be kept at all times in a clean, healthful
and sanitary condition, and all stairways and other passages and all rooms
connected with a public dance hall shall be kept open, unobstructed, safe
and well lighted during the public use.
The Village Board of Trustees shall have power and it shall be its duty
to cause the place, hall or room where any public dance is held or given to
be vacated whenever any rule or regulation or any provision of any law or
ordinance with regard to public dance halls or public dances is being violated
or whenever an indecent act shall be committed or whenever any disorder or
conduct of a gross, violent and vulgar character or any other lawful act or
conduct shall take place therein.
A. All public dances and all public dance halls shall be
closed on or before the hour of 2:00 a.m. of each day and vacated by 2:30
a.m.
B. Persons under the age of 18.
(1) It shall be unlawful after 9:00 p.m. to permit any person
to attend or take part in any public dance who has not reached the age of
18 years, unless such person is accompanied by a parent or guardian.
(2) It shall be unlawful for any person to represent himself
or herself to have reached the age of 18 years in order to obtain admission
to a public dance hall or public dance or to be permitted to remain therein
when such person in fact is under 18 years of age. It shall also be unlawful
for any person to represent himself or herself to be a parent or guardian
of any person in order that such person may obtain admission to a public dance
hall or public dance or shall be permitted to remain therein when the person
making the representation is not, in fact, either a parent or guardian of
the other person.
It shall be unlawful for any person conducting a public dance or public
dance hall or any manager or other agent of such person to:
A. Sell or accept or cause to be sold or accepted any ticket
or token for admission between the hours of 2:00 a.m. and 12:00 noon.
B. Permit on the public dance hall premises any person having
in his possession or being under the influence of or offering for sale, selling,
giving away or consuming any intoxicating beverage or controlled substance
as defined under the laws of the State of New York or the United States. This
provision shall not be deemed to prohibit the sale or dispensing of beer or
liquors, for consumption on the premises, by the owner or operator of such
premises, or their lawful agents or employees, when a proper and valid liquor
license has been issued therefor.
C. Permit gambling in any form on the premises.
D. Permit the lights in a public dance hall at any time
during a public dance to be turned out.
E. Permit or employ any instructor under the age of 18 years
to give instructions in dancing.
F. Permit any person, for the purpose of soliciting business,
to do dancing exhibitions in any outside window.
G. Permit the dance hall premises to become overcrowded
or a fire hazard.
The Village Building Inspector and the members of the Police Department
and Bureau of Fire Prevention shall have access at all times to all public
dance halls and public dances. The Village Building Inspector and members
of such Department and Bureau shall be detailed to investigate all complaints
about and to supervise such public dance halls and public dances and shall
visit such halls and dances and report any and all violations.
A. It shall be unlawful to hold any public dance or class
in dancing or to give instructions in dancing for hire in any public dance
hall within the limits of the village until the public dance hall in which
the same may be given or held shall first have been duly licensed for such
purposes.
B. It shall also be unlawful for any person to permit any
room or building owned or controlled by him to be used for the purpose of
a public dance hall unless the same shall be licensed as herein provided.
A. Any person desiring to procure a license as herein provided
shall file with the Village Clerk a written application upon a form furnished
by the village. Such application shall contain the names, residences and ages
of the applicants, if an individual, firm or partnership, or the names of
the shareholders and principal officers, their residences and ages, if the
applicant is an association or corporation. It shall also contain the name
or names of one or more persons whom such firm, partnership, corporation or
association shall designate as manager or persons in charge, with the address
or addresses of the same. Such application shall further state the following:
(1) The length of time that such applicant or applicants,
if an individual, firm or partnership, or the manager or person in charge,
if the applicant is a firm, partnership, corporation or association, has or
have resided in the village, his or their places of previous employment, whether
married or single, whether he or they or any of them have been convicted of
violating any law regulating the conduct of public dance halls or public dances
and, if so, when and in what court and, if convicted of any felony or misdemeanor,
the nature of the offense, when and what court and the disposition.
(2) The premises where such public dance hall is to be located
or conducted, giving the street and number of all entrances, the location
and dimensions of the room or rooms to be occupied and the total amount of
floor space to be used for dancing purposes.
(3) Whether the applicant or applicants or manager had, either
alone or with someone else, previously engaged as owner or employee in conducting
a public dance hall, when, where and for how long.
(4) The name and address of the person owning the premises
for which a license is sought.
(5) Whether a hotel, rooming house or lodging house is conducted
in any part of the premises for which a license is sought and, if any other
business is conducted or is to be conducted in the same building, the details
thereof.
(6) Such other information as the Village Board of Trustees
may from time to time require.
B. The consent of the owner of the premises shall accompany
the application.
The Village Board of Trustees shall refer the application required in §
44-33 to the Police Department, Health Officer, Bureau of Fire Prevention and Building Inspector, who shall inspect or cause to be inspected each application to determine whether the public dance hall sought to be licensed complies with the regulations, ordinances and laws applicable thereto. These officials shall furnish to the Village Board of Trustees, in writing, the information derived from such investigation, accompanied by a recommendation as to whether a license should be granted or refused.
[Amended 12-7-1989 by L.L. No. 3-1989]
Licenses shall expire on the 31st day of December succeeding the issuance
date thereof, and the license fee therefor shall be at such rates as may be
fixed, from time to time, by resolution of the Board of Trustees.
No license shall be issued unless and until it shall be found that all
of the persons named in the application required by this article are of good
moral character, that the proposed public dance hall complies with and conforms
to all laws, ordinances, health and fire regulations applicable thereto, that
it is properly ventilated and supplied with separate and sufficient toilet
conveniences for each sex and that it is an otherwise safe and proper place
for the purposes for which it shall be used.
A license may be refused by the Village Board of Trustees to any applicant
or applicants who or which shall have been convicted within two years of the
date of application of an offense against any of the provisions of this article
or to any association or corporation of which a member or members shall have
been so convicted, also to any person who has within five years of the date
of application been convicted of a felony or misdemeanor and to any association
or corporation of which any member has been so convicted of a felony.
A. Upon the filing of the application and the information as provided in the previous section, the Village Board of Trustees may, upon its approval of such application and the payment to the village of the license fee required by this article, issue to the applicant a license to conduct and maintain a public dance hall as provided in §
44-32.
B. Immediately upon the issuance of a license required by
this article, the Village Clerk shall so notify the Police and Fire Departments
and send a copy of the license and the hours of operation.
C. All licenses shall be numbered in the order in which
they are issued and shall state clearly the location of the public dance hall,
the dates of issuance and expiration of the license, the fee paid and the
name of the licensee.
D. No applicant to whom a license has been refused shall
make further application until a period of at least six months shall have
elapsed since the last previous rejection, unless he can show that the reason
for such rejection no longer exists.
E. No license shall be granted to a person under 18 years
of age or renewed without a reinspection of the premises.
It shall be unlawful to transfer a license as to location or ownership.
A transfer of stock of a corporation shall be a transfer prohibited by this
section.
A. Every person licensed in accordance with the provisions
of this article shall immediately post such license and keep the same posted
while in force in a conspicuous place in the premises mentioned in the application
for such license.
B. It shall be unlawful for any person to post such license
or to be permitted to post it upon premises other than those mentioned in
the application or knowingly to deface or destroy any such license.
Whenever a license issued under the provisions of this article shall
be lost or destroyed without fault on the part of the holder or his agent
or employee, a duplicate license in lieu thereof under the original application
may be issued by the Village Clerk at his discretion, and, if issued, a recording
fee of $10 shall be paid to the Clerk.
A. The Village Board of Trustees may, for cause, at any
time, after giving notice to the licensee and an opportunity to be heard,
revoke any license granted under the provisions of this article, including
but not limited to for disorderly or immoral conduct on the premises or upon
proof that the public dance hall or a public dance given thereon was frequented
by disorderly or immoral persons or for the violation of any of the rules,
regulations, ordinances or laws governing or applying to public dance halls
or public dances.
B. Notice of such hearing and the reason therefor in writing
shall be served by the Village Clerk upon the person named in the application
by mailing the same to the address given in the application and by filing
a copy of such notice with the Village Clerk.
C. Whenever any license shall be revoked, no refund of any
unearned portion of the fee paid shall be made, and at least six months from
the time of such revocation shall elapse before another license shall be given
to conduct a public dance hall in the same premises.
It shall be unlawful for any person to hold a public dance within the limits of the village without first having obtained a permit therefor from the Village Board of Trustees. No permit shall be required for a private dance as defined in §
44-26.
A. Application for the permit required by this article must
be made at least 20 days before the dance authorized thereunder is to be held.
B. The person desiring such a permit shall use a form of
application, a copy of which may be obtained from the Village Clerk.
[Amended 12-7-1989 by L.L. No. 3-1989]
A permit may be refused by the Village Board of Trustees to any applicant
or applicants who or which shall have been convicted within two years of the
date of application of a second offense against any of the provisions of this
article or to any association or corporation of which a member or members
shall have been so convicted; also to any person who has within five years
of the date of application been convicted of a felony or misdemeanor and to
any association or corporation of which any member has been so convicted of
a felony.
[Amended 12-7-1989 by L.L. No. 3-1989]
The fee for a permit required by this article shall be at such rates
as may be fixed, from time to time, by resolution of the Board of Trustees,
for each public dance so held.
No transfer of a permit required by this article as to location or ownership
shall be made. A transfer of stock of a corporation shall be a transfer hereunder.
The Village Board of Trustees may, for cause, at any time, after giving
notice to the permittee and an opportunity to be heard, revoke any permit
granted under the provisions of this article, including but not limited to
for disorderly or immoral conduct on the premises or upon proof that the public
dance hall or a public dance given thereof was frequented by disorderly or
immoral persons or for the violation of any of the rules, regulations, ordinances
or law governing or applying to public dance halls or public dances. Notice
of such hearing and the reason therefor, in writing, shall be served by the
Village Clerk upon the person named in the application by mailing the same
to the address given in the application and by filing a copy of such notice
with the Village Clerk.