Chris Hutching
Some Christchurch city councillors are in a lather about signage on brothels.
Nine of the concerned councillors (out of a total of 12) who form the brothels location and signage subcommittee agonised and discussed ways they could force brothel owners to reduce the size of their signs and eliminate any visual clues about the sexual services rendered within such premises.
Some members of the committee were keen on passing a bylaw to ban signage.
However council staff reminded them that the key test for regulating or prohibiting signage of commercial premises for sexual services was whether they would cause a nuisance or serious offence to ordinary members of the public using the area, or whether such signage is incompatible with the character of the area.
Under the relevant legislation, to claim a public nuisance would require proof of an appreciable interference with a public right which causes damage, injury, discomfort or inconvenience to all members of the public.
The committee decided that the two remaining criteria “serious offense to ordinary members of the public” and “incompatible with the character or use of an area” should be considered as rationale.
The committee instructed to staff to clarify what constitutes commercial sexual services, the scope of bylaws, and whether a ban could be imposed in residential and/or industrial areas.