Chapter 10.23
Amusement Facilities

Sections:

Article I. Repealed

Article II. Teen Clubs

10.23.0202 Definitions.

10.23.0204 License Required.

10.23.0206 Expiration.

10.23.0208 Transfer.

10.23.0210 Application for License.

10.23.0212 List of Employees.

10.23.0214 Security Personnel.

10.23.0216 Control over Adjacent Areas.

10.23.0218 Right of Access.

10.23.0220 Restrictions on Admission.

10.23.0222 Hours of Operation.

10.23.0224 Additional Regulations.

10.23.0226 Insurance Required.

10.23.0228 Administrative Procedures.

10.23.0230 Enclosed Areas Prohibited.

Article III. Carnivals and Outdoor Concerts

10.23.030 Carnivals, Concerts and Dances – Definitions.

10.23.031 Permit Required for Circus, Carnival, Concert, or Dance.

10.23.032 Application.

10.23.033 Expiration and Transfer.

10.23.034 Special Regulations.

Article IV. Cabarets

10.23.040 Dancing – Definitions.

10.23.041 License Required for Cabaret.

10.23.042 Expiration.

10.23.043 Transfer.

10.23.044 Application.

10.23.045 Special Regulations.

10.23.046 Penalties and Interest.

Article I. Amusement Devices*

(Repealed)

*See SMC chapter 8.12.

Article II. Teen Clubs

10.23.0202 Definitions.

A.  “Teen club” is any building or part or other enclosed place where a teen dance is held or teen dancing is permitted, not including:

1.   an accredited public or private school or college,

2.   property owned or controlled by the federal, state, or local government,

3.   a facility operated by an organization which has been recognized as exempt from federal income taxation when teen dancing is but an occasional activity incidental to the facility’s primary purposes.

B.  “Teen dance” is a dance open to the public to which persons under the age of twenty-one years are admitted.

[Ord. C29318; Passed: 2/27/1989]

10.23.0204 License Required.

A.  No person may conduct or maintain a teen club without first obtaining a teen club license.

B.  The teen club license is a Class II license as provided in SMC chapter 4.04.

[Ord. C29318; Passed: 2/27/1989]

10.23.0206 Expiration.

A teen club license expires one year after date of issue.

[Ord. C29318; Passed: 2/27/1989]

10.23.0208 Transfer.

A license under this article is not transferable as to person or place.

[Ord. C29318; Passed: 2/27/1989]

10.23.0210 Application for License.

A.  The application is filed with, and the license fee is paid to, the office of taxes and licenses. The chief of police, or designated license officer, does not issue the license until the application has been reviewed and approved by the building official, fire marshal and director of taxes and licenses. If the club will provide food or drink:

1.   The approval of the health officer of the necessary food handling permits is also required,

2.   A cabaret license is also required, but without payment of the fee.

B.  In addition to the general requirements of SMC chapter 4.04, the applicant must furnish:

1.   the names and addresses of the owner, lessor and lessee of the property,

2.   the name, address and date of birth of every owner, officer and managing agent of the club, and of such other employees and agents as are known at the time of application,

3.   the name of the detective or security guard agency, if any, to be employed to provide security for the club,

4.   detailed plans and drawing of the teen club and adjoining areas showing the dance floor, the waiting area for persons seeking admission, the parking areas, all restrooms, coat rooms, game rooms and all other spaces accessible by patrons and all interior and exterior doors and windows.

5.   a binder showing the availability of the insurance required by SMC 10.23.0226.

C.  The license officer does not issue a license if any person with a financial interest in, or involved in the operation of, the club has within the preceding ten years been convicted of a:

1.   felony, or

2.   nontraffic criminal misdemeanor or gross misdemeanor involving:

a.   drugs,

b.   liquor,

c.   minors,

d.   prostitution,

e.   public indecency,

f.   a sexual offense,

g.   violence, or

h.   weapons.

[Ord. C29318; Passed: 2/27/1989]

10.23.0212 List of Employees.

If at any time after the filing of the application or during the term of a license, a new employee is hired who has not been identified to the license officer, the applicant or licensee is required to forthwith furnish the name, address and date of birth of such employee to the license officer. Similarly, the licensee is required to notify the license officer whenever a person listed on the application or supplemental list is discharged. The license officer investigates the criminal history of all such employees and may revoke or decline to renew a license when any such person has the disqualifying history described in SMC 10.23.0210.

[Ord. C29318; Passed: 2/27/1989]

10.23.0214 Security Personnel.

A.  It is the obligation of the licensee and a condition of the license to maintain at all times when the teen club is open for business a sufficient force of adequately trained security personnel. The number of security personnel to be on duty is determined by the license officer at the time of application based on such factors as the occupancy load of the dance floor area and the number and arrangement of other rooms off the main dance floor but the number of persons engaged in full-time security matters to the exclusion of other employment duties will not be less than three. The license officer can change the security requirements during the term of a license as conditions warrant.

B.  Every person providing security services in a teen club, except a detective or security guard licensed under SMC chapter 10.30, a special police officer commissioned under SMC chapter 10.41A, or a regularly commissioned police officer, is subject to a criminal history record search and the approval of the license officer the same as other employees of the club.

C.  There must be a person in charge of security on duty at all times when the club is open to the public and when anyone is in the building. Such person in charge of security must meet the experience or training qualifications for a detective agency or security guard agency license as provided in SMC 10.30.090(A).

[Ord. C29318; Passed: 2/27/1989]

10.23.0216 Control over Adjacent Areas.

A.  A teen club is expected to attract numbers of young people to the facility and to private and public property nearby. The management of a teen club, therefore, is responsible to exercise appropriate control over its invitees, not only inside the club, but also in the vicinity of the club for such purposes as preventing unnecessary noise, litter, trespass and property damage, traffic obstruction and similar activities which may constitute a public or private nuisance.

B.  If the history of operation of a teen club shows inadequate control of litter, the license officer may impose appropriate regulations, including the posting of a bond, to ensure litter prevention or clean-up as a condition of continued validity of the existing license or of the issuance of a future license.

C.  One of the purposes of the security personnel requirement is to maintain the public peace and order around a teen club, in such places as the parking lot, public sidewalk and waiting area. The licensee is under a continuing obligation to take reasonable measures, including to call the police department, to curtail any conduct which is or threatens to be violative of state or local laws or offensive to public health, decency and morality, or peace and order, including, without limitation, minors in possession of liquor, use or possession of controlled substances and disorderly conduct.

[Ord. C29318; Passed: 2/27/1989]

10.23.0218 Right of Access.

A teen club is at all times available for access by any law enforcement officer.

[Ord. C29318; Passed: 2/27/1989]

10.23.0220 Restrictions on Admission.

A.  There may be only one point of entry to the teen club. The personnel at such point of admission must monitor the number of persons inside the club and prevent entry of persons in excess of the occupancy load.

B.  The licensee must provide an area, wholly on the private property of the club, where persons waiting for admission may assemble without occupying public right-of-way and where they will be easily within view of the club’s management.

C.  There can be no “in-and-out” privilege. Any person who seeks re-admission to the premises after having left the club must pay a re-admission charge of at least two dollars and fifty cents.

D.  There may not be admitted to a teen club any person:

1.   under the age of sixteen years, or

2.   twenty-one years of age or older except:

a.   a manager or employee of the club, or

b.   a parent or legal guardian accompanying his or her child or ward, or

c.   a spouse of a person who can legally be admitted to the club.

E.  The licensee may not admit any person who does not possess and display satisfactory identification. Only identification bearing the subject’s photograph and date of birth is satisfactory.

[Ord. C29318; Passed: 2/27/1989]

10.23.0222 Hours of Operation.

A.  Between the hours of 3:00 a.m. and 9:00 a.m.:

1.   No teen dance may be held,

2.   No teen club may be open, and

3.   No person, except an employee approved by the license officer, may be in the building of a teen club.

B.  Between the hours of 1:00 a.m. and 9:00 a.m. no person may be admitted or re-admitted.

[Ord. C29318; Passed: 2/27/1989]

10.23.0224 Additional Regulations.

A.  No owner, principal, officer, manager, or other employee coming in contact with members of the public may knowingly, or in circumstances when he or she should have known, allow or permit to occur on the premises:

1.   any criminal act which is a disqualifying conviction as described in SMC 10.23.0210,

2.   possession or consumption of alcohol or illegal controlled substances,

3.   the admission or failure to expel any person under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs.

B.  The license officer may adopt such further rules and regulations as are deemed necessary and proper to further the purposes of this article.

[Ord. C29318; Passed: 2/27/1989]

10.23.0226 Insurance Required.

As a condition of issuance and continued validity of a teen club license, the licensee must maintain a broad form comprehensive public liability insurance policy, issued by an insurance company qualified to do business in Washington, providing coverage of all claims for property damage and personal injury arising in connection with the operation of the club, with minimum limits of five hundred thousand dollars for any single claim and three million dollars for any one occurrence.

[Ord. C29318; Passed: 2/27/1989]

10.23.0228 Administrative Procedures.

This article is subject to the administrative provisions of SMC chapter 4.04 except:

A.  In addition to and in supplementation of the functions and powers of the license officer as set forth in SMC chapter 4.04:

1.   A teen club license may be suspended, revoked, or denied if:

a.   any datum furnished on the application was false or is not updated in a timely fashion,

b.   the structure ceases to comply with all applicable building, fire and zoning provisions,

c.   any condition of the teen club license or of any other license issued under this title has been violated, or

d.   any provision of this chapter is violated;

2.   The license officer may issue an order requiring the management of the club to correct any condition or practice that imperils the public health or safety upon twenty-four hours’ notice;

B.  All rulings and decisions of the license officer are final and not subject to appeal.

[Ord. C29318; Passed: 2/27/1989]

10.23.0230 Enclosed Areas Prohibited.

A.  In order that patrons be at all times visible to security personnel, the assembly area (dance floor) must be one open room. There may be no rooms or enclosed areas accessible to patrons except those rooms required by safety and health codes to be separated from the assembly area, namely, toilet rooms, kitchen or concession area and ticket sales or other office space. All other rooms must be kept locked and inaccessible by the public.

B.  Required exits must exit directly to the outside and no exit may provide egress through another area of the building.

[Ord. C29318; Passed: 2/27/1989]

Article III. Carnivals and Outdoor Concerts

10.23.030 Carnivals, Concerts and Dances – Definitions.

For the purpose of determining the need for the permit required by SMC 10.23.031:

A.  “Concert” is any organized event for the primary purpose of presenting live or recorded music or other amplified sounds for entertainment whenever the concert will be held in a building which is not licensed as a cabaret or is not operated by the entertainment facilities department of the City, or is not in a facility regulated by another agency, whether or not a charge or contribution is made for admission;

B.  “Dance” is any organized event for the primary purpose of presenting live or recorded music for dancing whenever the dance will be held in a building which is not licensed as a cabaret with dancing or is not operated by the entertainment facilities department of the City, or is not in a facility regulated by another agency.

[Ord. C30017; Passed: 4/1/1991]

10.23.031 Permit Required for Circus, Carnival, Concert, or Dance.

A.  No person may conduct, operate, or promote a circus, carnival, musical assembly, indoor concert, or dance without first obtaining a permit.

B.  The permit is a class IIA license as provided in SMC chapter 4.04.

[Ord. C30017; Passed: 4/1/1991]

Cross Reference: SMC 8.02.0202.

10.23.032 Application.

A.  An applicant for a permit under SMC 10.23.031 must make application at least forty days prior to the date of the proposed event.

B.  The applicant must demonstrate that no principal, manager, or person having a proprietary interest in the event has a criminal history related to such person’s fitness to conduct the event, including specifically crimes of moral turpitude.

C.  If the event requires any special physical facilities, the applicant must furnish specific plans with the application.

D.  The applicant must show the character, number and location of all potable water and other drinking, food, toilet, lavatory, waste collection and emergency medical facilities available and to be provided.

E.  The applicant must demonstrate the adequacy of the vehicle parking plan which provides one off-street parking space for every four persons expected to attend.

F.  The applicant must show plans for traffic and crowd control by commissioned city police officers at the ratio of one traffic-control officer and one crowd-control officer for every two hundred persons expected to attend.

G.  The applicant must state the procedure to be used to limit further attendance in the event attendance exceeds the capacity of the approved physical, sanitation, or law enforcement facilities.

H.  The applicant must furnish a certificate showing public liability insurance coverage in the minimum amounts of one hundred thousand dollars for personal injury, three hundred thousand per occurrence, and one hundred thousand dollars for property damage.

[Ord. C24396 §§ 18.19.040, 18.19.060, 18.19.070]

10.23.033 Expiration and Transfer.

The permit under SMC 10.23.031 is issued to a particular sponsor for a single event. The permit expires upon conclusion of the event and is not transferable.

10.23.034 Special Regulations.

Unless otherwise determined by the license officer, the permittee must have the physical facilities provided for a circus, carnival, musical assembly, or indoor concert or dance in place and ready for inspection by all interested officials five days prior to the event.

[Ord. C30017; Passed: 4/1/1991]

Article IV. Cabarets

10.23.040 Dancing – Definitions.

For the purposes of this chapter:

A.  “Bar” is any bar or counter from which liquor is served to customers for consumption, including the space behind the bar where the liquor for sale is kept.

B.  “Cabaret” is any room, place, or space in which music, singing, dancing, or other similar entertainment is permitted.

C.  “Liquor” is any of the four varieties of liquor defined by the Washington State Liquor Act, RCW title 66.

D.  “Service bar” is any bar upon which food or liquor is placed and from which it is then conveyed to customers seated at tables or in booths.

[Ord. C30017; Passed: 4/1/1991]

10.23.041 License Required for Cabaret.

A.  No person may conduct or maintain a cabaret without first obtaining a license.

B.  The license under this section is a class IIA license as provided in SMC chapter 4.04.

[Ord. C24387 § 18.08.020]

10.23.042 Expiration.

The license under SMC 10.23.041 expires one year after date of application.

[Ord. C30017; Passed: 4/1/1991]

10.23.043 Transfer.

No license under SMC 10.23.041 is transferable as to person or place.

[Ord. C24387 § 18.08.040]

10.23.044 Application.

In addition to other requirements of this chapter, an applicant for a license or permit under SMC 10.23.041 must demonstrate that the subject premises comply with all applicable building, fire and zoning codes; and that all managing employees have no criminal records relating to their fitness to engage in the licensed activities, particularly respecting violations of liquor laws.

[Ord. C24387 § 18.08.060]

10.23.045 Special Regulations.

A.  No cabaret operator may serve liquor to any person under the age of twenty-one years.

B.  No licensee or employee may consume any liquor on licensed premises during the time of such persons employment.

C.  No person under the age of eighteen years may be in any premises licensed under SMC 10.23.041 between the hours of one a.m. and six a.m., nor shall any licensee permit such minor to be on the premises between those hours.

D.  No licensee may conduct any dancing activity between the hours of two a.m. and six a.m. without prior special permission of the license officer.

E.  No licensee or employee may do, or permit to be done:

1.   soliciting of dancing partners or the purchase of refreshments on a commission basis;

2.   dancing with patrons or customers;

3.   immoral or obscene dancing; or

4.   smoking on any dance floor.

F.  The operator must maintain illumination in a cabaret at a minimum level of three foot-candles at a plane three feet above the dance floor.

G.  The operator of a cabaret where dancing is permitted:

1.   must not permit music to emanate off the premises;

2.   must not permit pre-recorded music unless it is delivered and controlled by a live entertainer on the premises whose sole function in the cabaret is entertainment;

3.   must keep the portion of the premises devoted to the preparation of food entirely separate from the dance floor;

4.   must provide a dance floor of not less than one hundred fifty square feet with each side being at least ten feet long;

5.   if the dance floor is elevated, must not maintain the dance floor higher than eighteen inches above the surrounding floor or closer than six feet from the nearest patron.

[Ord. C30017; Passed: 4/1/1991]

10.23.046 Penalties and Interest.

A.  Any person required to obtain a cabaret license under this code and who fails to do so in the time required by this code is subject to payment of interest on the outstanding balance at the rate of one percent per month or part of a month. In addition to the interest, penalties are assessed at the rate of fifteen percent of the amount due for any amount past due more than thirty days and twenty percent for any amount past due more than sixty days.

B.  The penalties and interest provided for in this section are collected as part of the license fee. Collection of such penalties and interest, or discontinuance of the activity, does not excuse noncompliance and is not a defense to prosecution.

[Ord. C31589; Passed: 3/25/1996]