The County Board of Supervisors unanimously passed an urgency ordinance Tuesday placing a moratorium on permits for adult-related establishments – including escort services, bathhouses and modeling studios – until new zoning ordinances are developed.

“There have been some interesting (business permit) uses popping up (in the county) in recent years,” County Executive Brad Hudson said Tuesday.

Despite being an “urgency” ordinance, Hudson said the measure did not come about in response to any particular incident with an adult-related establishment.

Hudson said county staff recently noticed a “spike” in the number of recycling centers cropping up throughout the county – business that were avoiding certain code restrictions by exploiting loopholes in the current business license and zoning codes.

“We started to ask ourselves is there were any other kinds of businesses in the same circumstance,” Hudson said. “Adult-related establishments was an area we found that needed a closer look.”

County Supervisor Don Nottoli said that the county has seen an increase in the number of adult-oriented businesses partly because the city has a comparatively restrictive code in place.

The city ordinance more broadly identifies which businesses and activities fall under the umbrella of “adult-related establishments” than the county ordinance, making location and distance restrictions apply to a wider variety of such businesses in the city.

“When the city is more restrictive in their business regulations, (some types of) businesses migrate to the county," Nottoli said. "That appears to be what has been happening.”

Nottoli said the moratorium will give county staff an opportunity to review current code standards and develop an updated ordinance for the board to consider at a future meeting.

“We have a very old zoning code,” Hudson said. “There are some older portions that haven’t been updated in a while and some newer commercial (property) uses aren’t addressed specifically in (the code).”

According to the County Business Code, “adult-related establishment” is defined as a bathhouse, escort bureau, introductory service, massage establishment, out-call massage service, modeling studio or sexual encounter center.

“Adult-related establishment” also includes businesses that allow patrons to pay for services or entertainment involving “specified sexual activities” or the display of “specified anatomical areas,” according to the county code.

Adult-related establishments do not, however, include adult bookstores, motion picture theaters, adult hotels, motels or cabarets.

In the unincorporated areas of Sacramento county, there are currently 10 escort services and one modeling studio with special adult-related establishment permits, County Spokeswoman Chris Andis said Tuesday.

There are no active permits for any bathhouses or sexual encounter centers in the county right now, Andis said – “not since the 70s.”

Although the county has distance requirements to separate adult-oriented businesses from schools and residential areas, some businesses get permits under another part of the code that doesn’t have the same requirements – allowing them to get around the rules.

According to a recent county staff report, as the commercial real estate market declined in recent years, property owners became more willing to lease their properties to businesses that they might have ignored in better economic times – including adult-oriented businesses.

Because of this trend, adult-related establishments can more easily locate close to residential areas or nearer to more mainstream businesses.

Adult-related businesses have a history of creating nuisance issues for surrounding businesses and residences, Hudson said The potential for those problems are only partially addressed by the current county business license ordinance.

The city of Sacramento’s more restrictive ordinance compounds these concerns.

“It’s similar to what’s been happening with marijuana dispensaries,” Hudson said. “The (restrictive) city ordinance drives some of these (adult-oriented) places out to the unincorporated areas of the county.”

Sheriff’s Department Spokesman Jason Ramos said Tuesday that service calls related to the various massage parlors or escort services in the county are few and far between.

“It makes sense,” Ramos said. “Think about it – the owners and employees of these places aren’t going to be calling the cops to come out, nor are the patrons who visit these places for services.”

When the Sheriff’s Department does get called, Ramos said, the most common complaint is that the businesses are “fronts” for illicit, sexual-related activity.

“That is the assumption some people have,” Ramos said. “Sometimes it’s true, sometimes not, of course.”

The Board of County Supervisors hopes to tighten regulations to limit – or eliminate – those businesses that are involved in illegal activities. The new moratorium will prevent “a new proliferation” of adult-oriented business in the county in the meantime, Hudson said.

The new urgency ordinance is a 45-day ban. The board may extend the interim ordinance two times: once for 10 months and 15 days, and subsequently for one year. No more than two extensions may be adopted, according to county staff.

The board is expected to review a draft permanent ordinance before the end of the year.

Melissa Corker is a Staff Reporter for The Sacramento Press. Follow her on Twitter @MelissaCorker.