PALM BAY, FL — At a Thursday night meeting that ran early into Friday, the Palm Bay City Council decided not to designate a proposed “red light district” for adult businesses, opting instead to adopt stricter provisions in its adult business ordinances and to pass a ban on public nudity.The decision was welcomed by local activists and business owners, according to a report published by FloridaToday.com.
Council members reportedly plan to consider other possible sites for adult businesses, primarily looking for sites that are off of the main roads in the area, and Palm Bay Mayor John Mazziotti proposed 13 specific main roads where adult businesses would be prohibited from locating.
According to FloridaToday.com, approximately 500 people attended the council meeting to voice their opposition to an ordinance that would have established an adult business zone southeast of the intersection of Palm Bay’s Malabar Road and Babcock Street.
Opponents of the ordinance held signs and wore stickers that read “I am a Palm Bay Voter” and “Justice for South Palm Bay.”
One of the organizers of the community effort, Angela Moore, handed the council a petition signed by 2300 people who asked that three revisions to city code be rejected, because residents of the affected area were not given sufficient notice of the proposed changes.
“We didn’t think we had input,” explained Moore.
Moore said that while she and most of the people who signed the petition are in favor of stricter regulations on adult entertainment and a ban on public nudity, they don’t want to see all local adult businesses grouped together in their neighborhood.
Moore said that the group was pleased with the Council’s vote Thursday night, but recognizes that the fight is not over.
“We’re making progress but not celebrating yet.” Moore said.
Currently, Palm Bay has no written prohibition of public nudity and adult businesses can locate anywhere within the city’s general commercial district, provided that they comply with “setback” provisions in the code that define how far away sexually oriented businesses must be from locations like schools and day care centers.
Palm Bay hired Melbourne, Florida-based attorney Michael Kahn to help update its ordinances to make them as strict as the law allows, given relevant case law. Kahn says that he did just that – and that some of the changes that local activists want to see would not survive court scrutiny.
Speaker Rick Cloutier, for example, asked the Council to consider adopting higher license fees and Reverend Ken Delgado inquired about charging adult businesses “impact fees” – both of which Kahn said were likely not legally permissible.
Kahn said that based on the city’s population, the city needs to provide 13 sites in which adult businesses may locate. The city currently has only two adult businesses, according to FloridaToday.com; one adult bookstore and one topless club.
Kahn said that he will meet with planning director Dave Watkins and the two will consider alternative sites around the city for adult businesses. Kahn indicated that they will avoid the main roads proposed by Mazziotti in order to keep those streets adult business-free.
“[Adult businesses] want to be on the main roads, so that would discourage them,” said Mazziotti.
The alternative locations proposed by Kahn and Watkins will be taken up at a special meeting to be held April 30th.
