PORT TOWNSEND — The Jefferson County commissioners Monday approved extending a moratorium on the establishment of sexually oriented businesses for six months, after which time the county will be able to determine a permanent policy of regulation.
This is the seventh time the moratorium has been extended since 2005.
A public hearing on the moratorium is scheduled as part of the commissioners’ meeting Monday, Nov. 8.
One of the concerns would be the location of any such business, the caveat that confining the businesses to a single area “could create a red-light district,” according to Commissioner David Sullivan.
The ordinance approved by commissioners reads: “Adult businesses, while afforded limited constitutional protection, often result in undesirable secondary effects, including criminal and other activities such as narcotics and liquor law violations.”
The ordinance goes on to state that “the county’s land-use planning process will suffer significant harm unless applications for permits and approval for adult businesses are prohibited until the planning process is completed.”
Department of Community Development officials have indicated that a policy governing adult businesses could be finished prior to the expiration of the new moratorium in May 2011.
