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Friday, April 30, 2004
Don't lift strip club ban just yet
The Seattle City Council must avoid moving too fast in considering whether to lift a moratorium on strip clubs.
Given that the moratorium has been in place since 1988, haste is not imperative. Before the council takes up the issue, the city needs to have better controls on the clubs. Finally.
First, the city should adopt rules that require a 4-foot separation between dancers and customers, a limitation that makes it relatively simple for police to decide whether inappropriate conduct is occurring. Then the council should develop zoning regulations that determine the areas in which strip clubs could be located.
While strip clubs have a legal right to exist, municipalities have power to place reasonable limits on their location. If Seattle were to remove the moratorium immediately, new clubs could go into any commercial zone, potentially creating a wide proliferation of establishments beyond the current four. That's why councilman Peter Steinbrueck wants new land-use regulations in place before removing the moratorium.
Steinbrueck sounds a sensible note in suggesting a "temporary" moratorium can't go on forever. If a legal challenge were to occur, the courts might find that the city had abused its authority.
Perhaps there is no great need to fret about legal possibilities. But with tighter controls and good zoning rules in place, the council would be in a better position to decide whether to extend the moratorium or abandon it.
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