[HISTORY: Adopted by the Special Town Meeting of the Town of Griswold 9-20-1999. Amendments noted where applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Building construction — See Ch. 127.
Zoning — See Ch. 224.
The Board of Selectmen of the Town of Griswold, Connecticut finds:
A. 
There are, or may in the future be, adult-oriented establishments located in the Town of Griswold which 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, studies and rooms for the private viewing of so-called "adult" motion pictures and/or video tapes and/or live entertainment.
(2) 
Persons under the age of 18 may be attracted to adult-oriented establishments and seek to enter or loiter about them without the knowledge or permission of their parents or guardians.
(3) 
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.
(4) 
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.
(5) 
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.
(6) 
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.
(7) 
The nature of adult-oriented establishments and the traffic which they generate and the potential and the propensity for such establishments to attract persons interested in explicit sexual activities or erotic art forms and the potential for outdoor assembly of such persons around the premises of such establishments are such as to make them incompatible with nearby uses of land where concentrations of children or youth tend to congregate.
C. 
The continued unregulated operation of adult-oriented establishments, including, without limitations, those specifically cited in § 117-2 hereof, is and would be detrimental to the general welfare, health and safety of the citizens of Griswold.
D. 
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-otiented establishments as hereinafter defined in order to protect the public health, safety and welfare.
E. 
It is not the intent of the Board of Selectmen, 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 Board of Selectmen to impose any additional limitations or restrictions on the contents or any communicative materials, including sexually oriented films, video tapes, books and/or other materials. Further, by enacting this chapter, the Board of Selectmen 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:
ADULT AMUSEMENT MACHINE
Includes any amusement machine that is regularly used for presenting material distinguished or characterized by an emphasis on matter depicting, describing or relating to specified sexual activities and specified anatomical areas, as defined below, for observation by patrons therein.
ADULT BOOKSTORE
An establishment having any portion of its stock and 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, provided that this definition shall not apply to any establishment in which such materials constitute less than 10% of the value of the inventory of said establishment and in which the display of such materials does not permit the viewing of specified sexual activities or specified anatomical areas within the establishment.
ADULT ENTERTAINMENT
Any exhibition of any adult-oriented motion pictures, live performance, display or dance of any type, removal of articles of clothing or appearing unclothed, pantomime, modeling or any other personal services offered customers which has as a significant or substantial portion of such performance, or any actual or simulated performance of, specified sexual activities or exhibition and viewing of specified anatomical areas
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 mini-motion picture theaters and commercial establishments containing one or more adult amusement machines. Adult-oriented establishment 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.
AMUSEMENT MACHINE
Includes any machine which, upon the payment of a charge or upon insertion of a coin, slug, token, plate or disk, may be operated by the public for use as a game, entertainment or amusement, whether or not registering a score and whether or not electronically operated.
BOARD OF SELECTMEN
The Board of Selectmen of the Town of Griswold, 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 an independent contractor.
INSPECTOR
One or more employees of the Town of Griswold designated by the Selectmen who shall hereby be authorized to inspect premises regulated under this chapter and to take the required actions authorized by this chapter 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, or any proprietor, shareholder, general partner or limited partner who holds any of share or partnership interest of any business which is operating, conducting, owning or maintaining an adult-oriented establishment.
SEXUAL ACTIVITIES
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 denote at least 25% of the lineage of each issue to articles and advertisements dealing with subjects or art or photographs. 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.
SPECIFIED ANATOMICAL AREAS
A. 
Less than completely and opaquely covered:
(1) 
Human genitals, pubic region.
(2) 
Buttocks.
(3) 
Female breasts below a point immediately above the top of the areola.
B. 
Human male genitals in a discernibly turgid state even if completely covered.
SPECIFIED SEXUAL ACTIVITIES
A. 
Human genitals in a state of sexual stimulation or arousal.
B. 
Acts of human masturbation, sexual intercourse or sodomy.
C. 
Fondling or erotic touching of human genitals, pubic region, buttock or female breasts.
SUPERVISOR
The police, building, zoning, officials.
A. 
No operator or employee of an adult-oriented establishment shall allow or permit any minor or intoxicated person 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 shall display a sign outside each entrance bearing the words, "Adult-oriented establishment - persons under 18 not admitted" in letters three inches high.
C. 
No adult-oriented establishment shall be conducted in such a manner that permits the observation of any material depicting specified sexual activities or specified anatomical areas from the outside of the building that houses the adult-oriented establishment.
D. 
Every adult-oriented establishment doing business in the Town on or after September 20, 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.
E. 
On or after September 20, 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 1.0 foot candle 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.
F. 
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.
G. 
An operator shall be responsible for the conduct of all employees while on the licensed 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.
H. 
All adult-oriented establishments shall be open to inspection at all reasonable times by the Inspector, or such other person(s) as the Board of Selectmen may designate. Information regarding employees, including name, date of birth and social security number, must be maintained as part of the record and must be available for inspection by Town officials.
Adult-oriented establishments or any signage, advertising or notice for the adult-oriented establishment shall be located not less than 1,000 feet from any of the following uses, if existing at the time when the adult-oriented establishment is established: any public or private school serving grade 12 or lower; any day care center, nursery school or similar use; any public park or playground; any playground associated with a church or other community building; any residential zone. Measurements of distances shall be from any portion of the building housing such adult-oriented establishment to any portion of a parcel of land containing such land uses or being residentially zoned. The separating distance required by this section shall be determined as of the date that any adult-oriented establishment commences to operate in accordance with this chapter and any applicable provision(s) of the Town of Griswold Zoning Regulations,[1] Building Code,[2] Health Code and other applicable state and local laws, and such adult-oriented establishment shall not be deemed to violate this section if, thereafter, one of the enumerated uses is established within the distance set forth herein.
[1]
Editor's Note: See Ch. 224, Zoning.
[2]
Editor's Note: See Ch. 127, Building Construction.
No adult-oriented establishments or any signage, advertising or notice for the adult-oriented establishment shall be permitted in any portion of a building that is less than 1,000 feet from that portion of a building occupied by an existing adult-oriented establishment. The 1,000 feet shall be the straight horizontal distance from any part of a building housing an adult-oriented establishment to any part of the other building housing such use or any public entrance or exit into or out of that building housing an adult-oriented establishment or, if only a portion of the building is so used, any public entrance or exit into or out of any portion of the building housing such adult-oriented establishment to any such public entrance or exit for any existing adult-oriented establishment.
A. 
Any person, partnership or corporation who 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 more than one hour of time shall be considered a separate offense for each hour of violation.