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 THURSDAY, MARCH 18, 2010 5:25 pm |
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Local News 
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Barista clothing rules delayed by County Council The council decides to wait on a pair of ordinances, upsetting foes of bikini barista stands. EVERETT — People who want tougher laws to keep nearly naked coffee-stand employees out of the public eye are worried that the Snohomish County Council is retreating from the issue.Councilmen said Wednesday they need another week to make sure proposed rules will hold up in court. The delay upset many people who showed up urging the council to adopt the new laws. “It’s frustrating, very frustrating,” said Rhonda Bremond, 48, who owns a business selling high-school graduation products near a drive-through stand at Murphy’s Corner. “They’ve had two years and now a week. “If they say they’re supporting it, why are they delaying it?” The hearing is scheduled to continue at 9 a.m. Wednesday. One proposed ordinance would regulate coffee huts and other businesses as adult entertainment if employees’ clothing is too revealing. A second would strengthen county rules on lewd conduct and clarify that drive-throughs are public places where such behavior is illegal. About 20 espresso stands in unincorporated Snohomish County would be affected by the proposed rules, said Kimberly Cole, 30, Council Chairman Mike Cooper’s legislative aide. Cole spoke during the hearing as a member of the public, saying she got involved in the issue after a coffee stand opened next to her son’s day care with a sign reading “honk if UR horny” and “naked girls.” Dave Gossett, who submitted the ordinance on lewd conduct, was one of the councilmen asking for more time. “We could do this today,” he said. “By delaying a week, we can make sure we do it right.” If not done right, the new laws would give false promise and nothing would change, Councilman Dave Somers said. He added that public masturbation and flashing customers — behavior people have reported seeing at drive-through stands — already is illegal and isn’t being enforced. “If both of these pass, we still have a problem,” Somers said. Cooper hesitantly supported the move to postpone a vote. “I’m prepared to vote for both of these ordinances today,” he said. Councilmen voted 4-0 to wait with Councilman John Koster leaving the meeting early to catch a flight for county business. The lack of action disappointed Russell Johnson, 23, the executive director of a nonprofit that works to get Christian youth involved in public policy and social issues. “Our concern is that we’re going to come back on Wednesday, and there will be a watered-down ordinance,” said Johnson of Youth Revolution. Twenty people spoke at the hearing, all in favor of stronger regulations. Nobody spoke up for the targeted businesses. Among other changes, the new rules could hold business owners and managers responsible for what employees do. A stand with a sexually suggestive sign would have to be licensed as an adult business. The new rules would attempt to keep anybody under 18 from working in or patronizing adult-oriented stands. Noah Haglund: 425-339-3465, nhaglund@heraldnet.com. What’s next The Snohomish County Council is scheduled to continue its hearing on lewd-conduct and adult-business ordinances at 9 a.m. Wednesday. The hearing is on the eighth floor of the county administration building east, 3000 Rockefeller Ave., Everett. |
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COMMENTS
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and can snohomish afford the lawsuit?
brian smith | Dec 4, 2009 7:53 am | 1 replies | Request removal
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I dont know, and Hell no they cant afford it
David Williams | Dec 05, 2009 3:08 pm | Request removal
I don't have any problem with actual bathing suits. It's the pasties, lingerie and other clothing items not normally worn outside. Over-the-top suggestive signs anyone going by on the road can read.
It's also about behavior, flashing customers and simulating sex aren't required to make a good cup of coffee. I don't want to stop such behavior, even if I don't agree with it, but it's adult entertainment and should be regulated as such.
I didn't realize a stand I had been going to for a while had switched to be one of these, and took my then 6 year-old niece through. The barista was wearing two Christmas bows strategically place, a pair of thong undies and a little body glitter. Bit of a shock, had I known I would have gone elsewhere. I don't need the stand closed down, but I think we have a right to fair warning.
LH25 | Dec 3, 2009 10:40 am | 2 replies | Request removal
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Excuse me but nothing of your story suggest you are responsible enough to drive or be around your niece. It appears you sit in line as an adult view what you consider offensive behavior, order a coffee, pay and then claim you did not know about the stand because it changed? Any responsible adult with a child in a car waiting in line would not sit in that line, become offended, order a coffee pay and leave. A responsible adult upon seeing something as you describe with a 6 year old child in the car would pull out of the line or drive past the order window when the chance to leave presented its self and left. So it was you whom took it upon yourself to expose a child to what you considered offensive behavior. Laws should not be expanded to protect people from their own stupid choices. You could have left at any time…dah!
Michael Sherwood | Dec 03, 2009 7:30 pm | Request removal
Well, if there had been a line, and I had indeed seen the barista before pulling up to the window, I would have left earlier. And I didn't order a coffee or pay as you suggest. I pulled up, saw her and left. I had been a patron of the stand in the past, hadn't been there for a while and thought it would be fun to get my niece a hot chocolate.
You can't see into the stand clearly from the road, in fact this one is a good location for an adult stand, I just would have liked something indicating it was such. Like some stand now say "Family friendly" have something that indicated what it was. Then we all could make the choice we want. What is what my first comment advocated.
LH25 | Dec 04, 2009 7:04 am | Request removal
Maybe as a before comment stated people are uncomfortable when they go to one of these stands not knowing there will be scantely clad women working, amen to that by the way:) Maybe there should be some sign or symbol that will alert those who are easily offended or with children so they can avoid it. I also find it rather odd that for as far left as our region is, and being accepting of same sex marriages and such that this shluld be a non issue.....oh wait this caters to the hetero sexual males...god forbid lets have a riot. People do what they do to make some money, if you have a nice body and can gain financilly from it why not? If you have a good brain and can gain from it go for it, if you have no brain and no body then become a politician and get paid for nothing.
Gary Beane | Dec 3, 2009 4:47 pm | 0 replies | Request removal
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Does it really make sense or is it fair to the majority when a small contingent of "feminazis" or self-righteous (i.e. "Christian")religious nut-jobs try to control free enterprise? Admit it or not, a lot of the untruths being spread is coming from a group of frumpy, sexually unfulfilled prudes. If these businesses thrive and are paying their annual city/county licenses, plus able to withstand the occasional audit by the health department, then leave them alone. If they go out of business for lack of customers or poor management, well that's the other side of the free enterprize coin. I'm getting kind of weary with all the attention that The Herald is giving to an extremely small minority of people who want forceably create a society that suits their own narrow-minded definition of what the USA should become.
Douglas Stevens | Dec 3, 2009 1:02 pm | 0 replies | Request removal
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I'm tired of people making statements that Barista wearing bikinis are a nuisance and is basically public nudity and shouldn't be around schools. I've seen my share of skimpy swimsuits at beaches and I certainly don't hear anybody (including women) complain there. What is the difference between wearing it at a beach where all your kids go (or even the YMCA), versus a barista where you are buying coffee from the same gal that would normally wear the same stuff on a public beach.
Yes, by all means - if a Barista is providing "extra" service with your mocha then that oversteps the boundary. Serving a coffee thru a window in a bikini is their choice and nothing for the police, public or government should be involved in. I look forward to the first Barista that is hampered by anyone - to file a lawsuit.
This is stupid, - the real problem is people feel offended probably because they don't look that good in a bikini so they retaliate. As for kids? I've seen more in a sports illustrated in the schools library. Get over it public.
joel james | Dec 3, 2009 11:13 am | 0 replies | Request removal
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OK. If all this is too "sexy" for the prudes we better start looking at plumbers too. "Watch out Jake! You're showing too much butt crack!"
Russ White | Dec 3, 2009 10:18 am | 0 replies | Request removal
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...it amazes me how people would get all bent out of shape over a cup of frikin coffee, served from a tiny lttle stand, which the majority of men & women could care less about.
I compare this to the "prohibitionists movement" before alcohol was made illegal & were activists in making it illegal. Gee, how's that working out? ---pretty good, so far, it seems.
ref: http://blog.christianhistory.net/upload/2009/05/Prohibition%20Womans-Holy-War2.jpg
ref: http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_29DWeWeHZq8/Rh2CecEfx8I/AAAAAAAAALQ/WPCVHItFR8s/s400/Miss+Earth+Philippenes.jpg
Which one of the 2 photo's linked above is MORE illegal? If you, as a lawmaker, make ONE illegal, you have to make them ALL illegal. Simply said, you can't just pick on coffee.
cme everett | Dec 3, 2009 4:18 am | 2 replies | Request removal
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AMEN
David Williams | Dec 03, 2009 6:48 am | Request removal
With that train of thought I guess there is no reason we can’t have pole dancers on every street corner, eh? The world is going to pot.
walter Lasher | Dec 03, 2009 8:14 am | Request removal