Kentucky- Following Kenton County’s lead, Campbell County plans to require the licensing of all sexually oriented businesses.
A Campbell County Fiscal Court ordinance would require licensing countywide.
Covington strip club owners and several employees of the clubs filed two separate lawsuits in 2004 in federal court against Kenton County’s licensing ordinance, but U.S. District Judge David Bunning upheld the ordinance.
Campbell County leaders were monitoring the federal court case and the ordinance can now move ahead, said Campbell County Administrator Robert Horine.
“It simply gives us additional motivation to proceed with the proposed ordinance for Campbell County,” he said.
An ordinance could be ready for a reading by fiscal court within two months, Horine said.
“It certainly has gained momentum since the federal court decision last week,” he said.
Two provisions of Kenton County’s ordinance; a $3,000 licensing fee, and a provision that entertainers cannot mingle with patrons until an hour after performing on stage, were being challenged, said Kenton County Attorney Garry Edmondson.
Kenton County’s ordinance includes requirements for annual license renewal provisions, employee background checks for prostitution convictions and other crimes that would affect licensing, live performance regulations and space and lighting regulations for inside adult bookstores.
Campbell County partnered with Kenton County from the outset to share the costs of professional consultants to perform a study completed in 2004, Edmondson said.
The county has used Kenton County’s ordinance as a model for its own version, Horine said.
Horine and other county officials are working to ensure an ordinance does not conflict with Newport’s existing licensing ordinance. Newport is the only city that currently requires licensing.
Newport created its own licensing ordinance in the 1980s.
“And there’s a good reason for that, Newport has been the only one with sexually oriented businesses operating there,” Horine said.
Inside Campbell County, two strip clubs remain operating in Newport, and in 2002 the Playpen Gentleman’s Club opened in Wilder.
Multiple calls to the Playpen Gentleman’s Club, and the Brass Mule in Newport were not returned.