The story of New York City's efforts to regulate the adult entertainment industry, which began under Mayor Rudolph Giuliani more than two decades ago, finally may be at an end.

In early June, in For the People Theatres of N.Y. v. City of New York, No. 59 (N.Y. June 6, 2017), the New York Court of Appeals overturned a decision by the Appellate Division, First Department, and ruled that the 2001 amendments to the city's adult entertainment zoning rules, which amended the city's 1995 zoning ordinance governing the industry, were constitutional and did not violate the plaintiffs' First Amendment rights.

More than two-thirds (22 pages) of the court's 32-page decision, by Judge Eugene Fahey for a unanimous court (with Chief Judge Janet DiFiore taking no part), discusses the history of the city's zoning efforts toward the industry. But it is the balance of the court's opinion that seals the fate of the remaining members of what once was a booming adult entertainment industry in mid-town Manhattan and other city environs.

A (Somewhat) Quick History

In 1994, the New York City Department of City Planning (DCP) completed a study of sexually focused businesses, namely “adult video and bookstores, adult live or movie theaters, and topless or nude bars,” and identified significant negative secondary impacts, including increased crime, diminished property values, reduced shopping and commercial activity, and a perceived decline in residents' quality of life. After public hearings, the city's Planning Commission issued a report, adopting the findings and conclusions of the study and noting that the businesses with adverse secondary impacts had “a predominant, ongoing focus on sexually explicit materials or activities.”