CHIEFLAND, FL — An old saw opines that “out of sight, out of mind.” Given this newest restriction on adult businesses, one might be tempted to apply the statement to the powers that be within the Chiefland City Commission. Thanks to a recent decision by the Commission, all adult businesses within the city may be compelled to hide themselves behind an 8-foot tall fence.So concerned is the Commission that the mere presence of an adult business might somehow put the health, morality and safety of the area’s citizenry at risk, that its regular Monday evening meeting included not only the decision to hide their fronts from the world but also make sure they are at least 500 feet from county-zoned residential areas and 1,000 feet from city-zoned recreational, public, educational, day car and church locations.
Previously, adult businesses could reveal their faces in public and could exist within 1,000 feet of a residential area either within or just beyond city limits.
Before making the courageous zoning changes, the Chiefland Citizen reports that the commissioners looked over a series of maps representing the available parcels involved in a number of setback scenarios.
With somewhat more than 4,000 acres of land available within city limits, the preferred city option allows 47 parcels of land equally 56.5 acres for development by adult commercial interests.
Before the city can demand that businesses surround themselves with fencing, the city Planning Commission must meet in February and review the City Commission’s proposals
According to the Chiefland Citizen, City Attorney Norm Fugate went to Liberty Counsel, a religiously based legal advocacy center in Orlando for advice on which map option would be most likely to survive a legal challenge.
