Consider this scenario; a drastic increase in burglary, theft, robbery and assault. A developing culture of fear, then commercial businesses begin to suffer and deterioration sets in. There is deterrence to home sales, and residential property values begin to drop.
What I am describing is the proven impact of a certain type of business when introduced to a community. A survey led by the city of Indianapolis shows there is no single facility that can offer a greater negative impact on residential and commercial property values than this type of facility. I am describing a sexually oriented business.
Sexually oriented businesses offer anything from entertainment to adult products, books or printed materials. Moral objection to this type of business is apparent, but such objection is sometimes joined by those with reservation to the economics of the scenario.
Numerous studies confirm the reality of negative secondary effects from sexually oriented businesses, effects which have been acknowledged by court rulings for over 30 years. I raise the question that if such businesses do in fact promote negative secondary effects, and if such effects would logically occur in our community, how is it not the responsibility of this community to be proactive in addressing this issue?
The areas near these businesses quickly become used for illicit purposes, which add to the rising climate of fear, thereby resulting in dwindling numbers of both residents and potential customers. The impact on commercial businesses is immediate. Soon newly vacant commercial property becomes filled with yet another business of the type.
One study cites an increase of serious crime of up to 77 percent when multiple sexually oriented businesses are permitted to operate within 1,000 feet of each other. It is no coincidence that this specific measurement is now used for zoning purposes and in ordinances nationwide by cities attempting to combat the effects of these businesses. A separate study describes multiple sexually oriented businesses in the vicinity of each other as an immediate increase in the statistical probability of opportunistic crime.
A significant percentage of appraisers surveyed by yet another study states that even an adult bookstore, if placed within one block of a residential neighborhood, often decreases home values by 20 percent. Furthermore, mortgage lenders in Austin, Texas, concluded that the presence of even a single sexually oriented business is enough justification to declare an entire area as in decline.
A critic may suggest that these studies are irrelevant to the rural Midwest, that freedom of speech is protected by the First Amendment, and that the federal government does not place opposition to adult materials or such businesses. A critic may argue that this is a state issue.
However, numerous studies show the effects are magnified when the business is in a smaller city, and though free speech is protected by the Constitution, slander, libel and, more specifically, obscenity, are not. As for the federal government, Exploitation and Obscenity Laws 18 U.S.C. §§ 1460-1470 would be a good resource to look into, including the fact that adult materials are not to be sold on federal property, including gas stations on publicly funded islands along the Interstate.
Finally, this is also a state issue, as each state technically defines obscenity for itself, so a local ordinance is likely to be based on one or all of the following: KSA 19-101a, KSA 12-741, and KSA 12-770.
This is not a simple task I am proposing, but it is a valid one, and though it is unlikely it will be a short road, it is imperative that we start the conversation and take the first step.
Dodge City Commissioner Brian A. Weber
DODGE CITY —
