VII. Recommendations

Interest in regulating adult entertainment businesses is increasing throughout the Country, as such establishments continue to proliferate. Potential negative impacts of adult businesses include declining property values, blight and deterioration of surrounding neighborhoods, crime, and loss of quality of life." Unincorporated New Hanover County does not currently have a concentration of adult entertainment establishments. However, there are no regulations in effect to control the future location of such businesses. New Hanover County should consider following the lead of other communities which have used zoning to regulate adult entertainment establishments. One of two zoning approaches is generally used. The dispersal technique requires that adult businesses be separated from each other (usually 1,000 feet apart) and located away from residential zones, churches, schools, and parks (usually 500-1,000 feet away). The concentration technique, on the other hand, allows adult entertainment uses only within a specified area. A primary purpose of either zoning approach is to prevent deterioration of neighborhoods. Courts have generally upheld the constitutionality of zoning ordinances aimed at controlling adult entertainment establishments, providing that regulations do not totally exclude or excessivel