1 No. 35
The City of New York et al.,
Respondents,
v.
Stringfellow's of New York, Ltd., et al.,
Appellants, Gramercy Twins Associates &c., et al.,
Defendants.
_________________________________________________________________
2001 NY Int. 36
March 29, 2001
This opinion is uncorrected and subject to revision before publication
in the New York Reports.
Mark J. Alonso, for appellants.
Margaret G. King, for respondents.
_________________________________________________________________
ROSENBLATT, J.:
Under New York City Zoning Resolution § 12-10, an "adult eating or
drinking establishment" is one "not customarily open to the general
public * * * because it excludes minors by reason of age."
Stringfellow's, a topless bar(1) , contends that because it has
adopted a policy for the admission of minors, it is not an "adult
eating or drinking establishment." We reject this argument and affirm
the order of the Appellate Division.
I.
In 1993, the New York City Department of City Planning began a
comprehensive assessment of the impact of adult establishments on the
quality of urban life. In DLJ Restaurant Corp. v City of New York (___
NY2d ___ (decided today)), we recounted the history and results of New
York City's initiative in studying and dealing with the adverse
effects of adult establishments on urban life. The study concluded in
1995 with the City's adoption of an Amended Zoning Resolution (see,
Amended Zoning Resolution of City of NY § 12-10 (hereinafter "AZR"))
as a means of stemming the negative, secondary effects of adult
establishments, such as crime, property devaluation, blight, and the
inappropriate exposure of children and teenagers to sexually oriented
environments.
The AZR confines certain "adult eating or drinking establishments" to
SNIPPETS:
The City of New York et al., Respondents, v. Stringfellow's of New York, Ltd., et al.,
This opinion is uncorrected and subject to revision before publication in the New York
Under New York City Zoning Resolution § 12-10, an "adult eating or drinking establishment" is
Stringfellow's, a topless bar, contends that because it has adopted a policy for the
the New York City Department of City Planning began a comprehensive assessment of the impact
In DLJ Restaurant Corp. v City of New York (___ NY2d ___ (decided today)), we recounted the
1995 with the City's adoption of an Amended Zoning Resolution ) as a means of stemming the
The AZR confines certain "adult eating or drinking establishments" to the City's
While Stringfellow's was pursuing its constitutional challenge, it adopted a policy in which
The staffer must then ask the child for identification.
No minor may be admitted unless accompanied by a parent or guardian, and there is no age
Stringfellow's moved to dismiss the City's complaint and Supreme Court granted the motion.
The Appellate Division reversed and remanded the matter for further proceedings, concluding
Stringfellow's appealed to this Court as of right, pursuant to CPLR 5601, and we now affirm.
"which is not customarily open to the general public during such features because it excludes
As a bar that features topless dancing, there is no question that Stringfellow's meets
In essence, it reflects an impossible tightrope walk between the AZR and the Penal Law: If
When the lawmakers' purpose is as clear as it is here, we will not bend their words into the
The AZR was designed to keep children away from these establishments, not to have them
With supreme irony, the more children the management were to admit, the more secure would be
"pecified sexual activities" are "human genitals in a state of sexual stimulation or arousal;
"Specified anatomical areas" are less than completely and opaquely concealed: human genitals,
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