Title
Ordinance To Amend And Re-Enact Chapter 3 Of The Zoning Ordinance Of The City Of Hampton, Virginia Entitled “Uses Permitted” By Amending Section 3-3 Pertaining to Additional Standards For Live Entertainment 1
Purpose
Background Statement:
Last winter the definition of live entertainment 1 and the associated additional standards were amended to make it easier for restaurants to provide live entertainment for dining patrons. However, one particular standard has proven to be problematic for older, and typically smaller, locations. The current standards require a restaurant to meet today’s parking standards prior to being permitted live entertainment. The City would like to be more supportive of restaurants that are either long standing or making an attempt at reusing an older commercial space, of which the city of Hampton has many. Therefore, this zoning ordinance amendment proposes eliminating the standard requiring today’s parking standard be met.
The logic behind this proposal goes beyond merely wishing to support the continued use and investment in older development. When the previous live entertainment 1 amendments were adopted, a key element of defining live entertainment 1 was that the live entertainment would be an amenity to dining with tables and chairs remaining in place and no dance floor or similar standing room space would be provided. Therefore, it reasoned that the number of patrons accommodated with the addition of live entertainment would be no different than the restaurant accommodated without live entertainment. Therefore, if the restaurant can legally operate without live entertainment while providing the number of spaces it has, even if that number does not meet today’s standard, the restaurant should be able to provide live entertainment 1 while maintaining its legally nonconforming status and operate with that same number of parking spaces.
This change only affects live entertainment 1. Live entertainment 2, which can provide for fe...
Click here for full text