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could "grandfather" certain sexually oriented businesses through a public hearing process. <br /> Most of the clubs that were grandfathered were isolated establishments which advertised <br /> discreetly and were buffered from residential uses. <br /> The study noted that in several instances, state and federal courts have upheld local <br /> ordinances controlling sexually oriented businesses, and have deemed them constitutional as <br /> long as the localities provided for a sufficient number of relocation sites. <br /> These studies in the other localities "found that adult entertainment uses have negative <br /> secondary impacts such as increased crime rates, depreciation of property values, deterioration <br /> of community character and the quality of urban life." <br /> The study results indicated that even a single sexually oriented business impacts the <br /> properties immediately surrounding it, and those adverse impacts increase in proportion to the <br /> visibility of the business. <br /> ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH GROUP REPORT <br /> March 31, 1996 <br /> In 1996, Environmental Research Group (ERG) of Philadelphia, PA performed a study of <br /> the negative effects of sexually oriented businesses. The study involved examining several <br /> municipal land use studies and historical data from the 1970s through 1996, compiling data and <br /> drawing conclusions based on statements and conclusions of previous land use studies. <br /> This study concluded that sexually oriented businesses provide a focus for illicit activities <br /> pertaining to prostitution, pandering, and other illegal sex acts. Also noted was an increase in <br /> crime statistics, especially sexual crimes such as illegal exposure. The most frequent clients of <br /> sex businesses are (and have been since at least the late 18th century) young, transient, single <br /> males. Statistically, this social category has interests that are in conflict with those of social <br /> groups consisting of families and/or the elderly. Studies of businesses in Bothell, WA and <br /> Austin, TX revealed that fewer than three percent (3%) of the vehicles parked in the lots were <br /> registered to owners residing a mile or less away. <br /> ERG concluded that the impact of sex businesses upon small towns is more intense <br /> than that upon big towns. The business district of a small town is not as large and not capable <br /> of "dividing up" sections of town. A national survey of real estate appraisers and lenders <br /> revealed that the placement of a sexually oriented business is generally an indicator of the <br /> decline of a community- in a small town, the business district as a whole is impacted. Also, the <br /> target audience in a small town will not suffice for a sex business, which must draw business <br /> from a larger surrounding region. Sex businesses also set the tone of the pedestrian traffic in <br /> the area. Interviews with non-sex-business patrons and passers-by indicated a likelihood that a <br /> person on foot in the vicinity of sexually oriented businesses will be propositioned for sex acts or <br /> sexually harassed. <br /> Finally, a review of surveys of real-estate appraisers suggests that the establishment of <br /> a sexually oriented business in either a residential or a commercial neighborhood will <br /> predictably lead to a significant drop in neighborhood property values. <br /> HOUSTON, TEXAS <br /> 4 <br /> 000017 <br />