The Town Council of the Town of West Hartford,
Connecticut finds that:
A. Adult-oriented establishments in the Town of West
Hartford require special supervision from the Town's public safety
agencies in order to protect and preserve the health, safety and welfare
of the Town's citizens.
B. The continued unregulated operation of adult-oriented establishments, including, without limitation, those specifically cited at Subsection
B, including, without limitation, those specifically cited at Subsection
B hereof, is and would be detrimental to the general welfare, health and safety of the citizens of West Hartford and especially its youth.
C. The Constitution and 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.
D. It is not the intent of the Town Council, in enacting
this article, to deny any person's rights to speech protected by the
United States and/or state constitutions, nor is it the intent of
the Council 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 Council 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 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 Chapter
177, inclusive, the words and phrases used herein shall have the following meanings, unless otherwise clearly indicated by the context:
ADULT AMUSEMENT MACHINE
Includes any amusement machine that is regularly used for
presenting material distinguished or characterized by an emphasis
on depicting, describing or relating to specified sexual activities
or specified anatomical areas, as defined below, for observation by
patrons therein.
ADULT BOOKSTORE
An establishment having a substantial or significant portion
of its stock-in-trade in books, films, video cassettes 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 in conjunction therewith has facilities for the presentation of
adult entertainment, as defined below, and including adult-oriented
films, movies or live entertainment, for observation by patrons therein.
ADULT ENTERTAINMENT
Includes any exhibition of any adult-oriented motion pictures,
videos, 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.
ADULT MINI-MOTION-PICTURE THEATER
An enclosed building with a capacity of less 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.
ADULT MOTION-PICTURE THEATER
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.
ADULT-ORIENTED ESTABLISHMENT
Includes, without limitation, adult bookstores, adult motion-picture
theaters, adult video galleries, adult mini-motion-picture theaters
and further means any premises to which the public, patrons or members
are invited or admitted and 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, or which premises 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. 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.
AMUSEMENT MACHINE
Includes any machine which, upon the payment of a charge
or upon the insertion of a coin, slug, token, plate or disk, may be
operated by the public for the use as a game, entertainment or amusement,
whether or not registering a score and whether or not electronically
operated, and shall include, but not be limited to, such devices as
pinball machines, skillball, mechanical grab machines, electronic
baseball, football, hockey or basketball machines, any and all air
propelled machines or games, pool tables, shooting games, any and
all video games and all other games, operations similar thereto under
whatever name they may be indicated, including video monitoring machines.
This definition shall not apply to those items generally described
as jukeboxes or billiard tables or pool tables in billiard or pool
parlors solely designated as such and permitted under this chapter.
COUNCIL
The Town Council of the Town of West Hartford, Connecticut.
EMPLOYEE
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.
ENTERTAINER
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 independent contractor.
INSPECTOR
An employee of the Town of West Hartford authorized and designated
by the Director of Health or the Zoning Enforcement Officer, or an
employee of the West Hartford Building Division or a member of the
West Hartford Police Department or the Fire Marshal of the Town of
West Hartford, or an agent of any or all of such persons who is designated
to inspect premises regulated under this article, and to take the
required actions authorized by this article or any other ordinances,
state or federal laws in case of violations being found on such premises,
and to require corrections of unsatisfactory conditions found on said
premises.
MINOR
Refers to a person under the age of 18 years.
OPERATOR
Any person, partnership, corporation or other legal entity
operating, conducting or maintaining an adult-oriented establishment.
SEXUAL ACTIVITIES
Is not intended to include any medical publications or films
or bona fide educational publication or films, nor does it include
any art or photography publications which devote 25% of the lineage
of each issue to articles and advertisements 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 semi-nudity is indigenous to the population.
SPECIFIED ANATOMICAL AREAS
Less than completely and opaquely covered: human genitals;
pubic regions; buttocks; female breasts below a point immediately
above the top of the areola; and human male genitals in a discernibly
turgid state, even if completely opaquely covered.
SPECIFIED SEXUAL ACTIVITIES
Human genitals in a state of sexual stimulation or arousal;
acts of human masturbation, sexual intercourse or sodomy; fondling
or erotic touching of human genitals, pubic region, buttock or female
breasts.
Should any court of competent jurisdiction declare
any section, clause or provision of this article to be unconstitutional,
such decision shall affect only such section, clause or provision
so declared unconstitutional, and shall not affect any other section,
clause or provision of this article.