Eliason v. City of Rapid City

306 F. Supp. 3d 1131
CourtUnited States District Court
DecidedJanuary 29, 2018
DocketCIV. 17–5082–JLV
StatusPublished

This text of 306 F. Supp. 3d 1131 (Eliason v. City of Rapid City) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering United States District Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Eliason v. City of Rapid City, 306 F. Supp. 3d 1131 (usdistct 2018).

Opinion

JEFFREY L. VIKEN, CHIEF JUDGE

Plaintiffs David Eliason and 1141 LLC filed this action against defendant City of Rapid City. The verified complaint alleges constitutional violations and seeks various forms of relief. (Docket 1). Plaintiffs filed a motion for a preliminary injunction based on three arguments claiming violations of the First Amendment. (Docket 14). Plaintiffs seek to open and operate a retail store *1134the City would regulate as a "sexually oriented business" based on the store's inventory. Id. at p. 4. Defendant denied plaintiffs the necessary permit for operation. Id. at p. 6. Because some factual issues were embedded in the preliminary injunction motion, the court entered a briefing schedule that provided a discrete time period for discovery. (Docket 18). The court held a hearing on plaintiffs' motion. (Docket 22). Based on the analysis set forth below, the court grants plaintiffs' motion.

BACKGROUND

In April of 2017, David Eliason met with Vicki Fisher of the Rapid City Community Planning and Development Services Department about opening his business. (Docket 1 at pp. 11-12). They specifically discussed where Mr. Eliason could run a store that the city would regulate as a "sexually oriented business." Id. at p. 12. Plaintiffs intend to name the business they seek to open "Dick & Jane's Naughty Spot" or "Dick & Jane's Super Spot." Id. at p. 10. The business would sell videos and magazines with sexual content.1 Id. at p. 11. Under Rapid City Municipal Code ("RCMC" or "City Code" or "ordinance"), sexually oriented businesses include adult-only bookstores, adult novelty shops and adult video stores. RCMC § 17.50.186(C). The ordinance states the purpose of regulating these businesses is "to promote the health, safety and general welfare of the citizens of the city, and to establish reasonable and uniform regulations to prevent the concentration of sexually oriented businesses within the city." § 17.50.186(A).

Mr. Eliason, along with his attorney, met with Ms. Fisher and other Rapid City employees in May 2017. (Docket 1 at p. 12). The City employees indicated Mr. Eliason could likely operate his sexually oriented business on Deadwood Avenue. Id. During the meeting, the Deadwood Avenue Business Park was suggested as a viable location not prohibited by the City Code, specifically RCMC § 17.50.186(D). (Docket 1 at p. 12). RCMC § 17.50.186(D) prohibits sexually oriented businesses from operating within 1,000 feet of various facilities such as churches, parks and schools. One category of facilities included in § 17.50.186(D) is defined as follows:

A public or private educational facility including but not limited to child day care facilities, nursery schools, preschools, kindergartens, elementary schools, private schools, intermediate schools, junior high schools, middle schools, high schools, vocational schools, secondary schools, continuation schools, special education schools, junior colleges, and universities; school includes the school grounds, but does not include facilities used primarily for another purpose and only incidentally as a school[.]

RCMC § 17.50.186(D)(1)(b).

Following his meetings with City employees, Mr. Eliason obtained a leasehold interest in a piece of real property at 1141 Deadwood Avenue in Rapid City. (Docket 1 at p. 12). The properly is in one of the City's general commercial zoning districts. Id. at p. 13. The City Code provides, "[a]ny sexually oriented business lawfully operating in a location permitted by this section shall be classified as a conditional use, and *1135authorized by § 17.54.030." RCMC § 17.50.186(E).

Working with Renner Associates LLC, Mr. Eliason arranged the materials necessary to apply to the Rapid City Planning Commission ("the Planning Commission") for a conditional use permit. (Docket 1 at p. 13). RCMC § 17.54.030 sets forth the procedures and criteria the Planning Commission uses for deciding whether to issue a conditional use permit. The criteria the Planning Commission must consider relate to building design, landscaping, parking, signage, public utilities and other matters. RCMC § 17.54.030(E)(1)-(12). The Planning Commission must also determine whether the requirements in § 17.50.186 are met.

In order to secure a conditional use permit, Mr. Eliason and Renner Associates submitted an application for development review to the Planning Commission in July 2017. (Dockets 1 at p. 13 & 1-5). On August 24, 2017, the Planning Commission approved the conditional use permit. (Dockets 1 at pp. 13-14, 1-6 & 1-7). Before voting to approve the permit, the Planning Commission considered whether the proposed business would be in compliance with § 17.50.186(D). (Exhibit 102 at p. 14).

Under § 17.54.030(F), the Planning Commission's decision was appealed to the Rapid City Common Council ("Common Council" or "City Council") by BHT,2 a martial arts studio in the area of the location of Mr. Eliason's planned business. (Docket 1 at p. 14). Among other things, BHT has classes teaching martial arts to people as young as age four. (Docket 1-8 at p. 4). BHT argued in its appeal that Mr. Eliason's business should not receive a conditional use permit because BHT, which is within 1,000 feet of Mr. Eliason's proposed location, is an "educational facility" under § 17.50.186(D). Id. at pp. 1-10; (Docket 1 at p. 15). Mr. Eliason filed a response contending BHT should not be viewed as an "educational facility." (Docket 1-9).

On September 18, 2017, Carla Cushman, an Assistant City Attorney in the Office of the City Attorney, wrote a legal memorandum to the Common Council on whether BHT was an educational facility. (Docket 1-10). The memorandum concluded BHT was not an educational facility, stating "Karate for Kids is not an educational facility as contemplated by the sexually-oriented business ordinance, and the 1000 foot buffer zone should not be applied to this situation to deny the [conditional use permit.]" Id. at p. 4. The memorandum provided several grounds for its conclusion: BHT is not regulated by any government as a school; the limited extent to which BHT's purpose is educational; other uses of the term "educational facility" in the City Code; the non-permanent nature of commercial enterprises such as BHT; and the limited frequency and duration of a student's visits to BHT. Id. at pp. 3-4.

On the same date as the City Attorney's memorandum, September 18, 2017, and at a meeting with extensive public input, the Common Council voted to deny Mr. Eliason's conditional use permit in a 6-4 decision. (Dockets 1 at p. 15 & 1-12 at p. 14); (Exhibit 103).

After the Common Council's action, Mr. Eliason met with Fletcher Lacock of the Planning and Development Services Department and Ms. Cushman on September 22, 2017. (Docket 1 at p. 16). They discussed *1136other potential locations for Mr. Eliason's business, but no one at the meeting identified an alternative location in compliance with the City Code. Id. Mr. Eliason and City officials explored whether he could modify his proposed business so it would not be regulated as a sexually oriented business. Id.; (Docket 1-13).

Then plaintiffs filed this lawsuit on October 18, 2017. (Docket 1).

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Bluebook (online)
306 F. Supp. 3d 1131, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/eliason-v-city-of-rapid-city-usdistct-2018.