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ORDINANCE NO. 4015-24 <br />An ORDINANCE Relating to the Regulation of Quick Service Facilities and Barista Stands, AMENDING <br />EMC 5.132.020; .040 (Ordinance 3650-17) <br />WHEREAS, <br />A.The City has seen a proliferation of crimes of a sexual nature occurring at bikini barista stands <br />throughout the City, on its borders, and in Snohomish County. The City has reviewed this matter <br />and found evidence relating to the adverse impacts of the conduct of bikini barista stands. This <br />evidence relates to barista stands with employees dressing in a manner that is closely and <br />customarily associated with adult entertainment or adult situations. Further this evidence <br />indicates that businesses providing casual food services including such things as fast food <br />restaurants, delis, food trucks and coffee stands (“Quick Service Facilities”) might easily transition <br />to the bikini barista stand model; <br />B.The City has considered such evidence as compiled in the legislative record for this ordinance also <br />including court cases, police records, memoranda and other information related to conduct of <br />bikini barista stands; <br />C.The City finds that it has primarily used its lewd conduct and adult entertainment regulations and <br />ordinances to regulate inappropriate conduct at these stands. This approach, however, has <br />resulted in a labor intensive enforcement effort by the City, while seemingly providing little or no <br />deterrent to the bikini baristas' continued flashing and committing acts of prostitution. Further <br />the City has found that the stand owner/operator are in the best position to ensure that <br />employees comply with existing lewd conduct laws; <br />D.The City finds that it is not the intent of the City to suppress any protected rights of expression <br />under the United States or Washington Constitutions, but to propose and enact content neutral <br />legislation which addresses narrowly the negative adverse impacts associated with bikini barista <br />stands while allowing these types of businesses adequate alternative channels for communication <br />of protected expression; <br />E.The City finds that a licensing mechanism is needed to place more accountability and <br />responsibility on the owners of businesses where the illegal conduct has occurred. Exclusive <br />reliance on existing criminal provisions allow owners to avoid liability by pleading ignorance and <br />game the system by creating a paper trail purporting to prohibit conduct while in fact encouraging <br />that conduct by looking the other way and setting revenue expectations that implicitly encourage <br />such conduct;