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REQUEST FOR <br />Planning Commission Action <br />PLANNING COMMISSION MEETING DATE: <br />SEPTEMBER 9, 2019 <br />TITLE: <br />PUBLIC HEARING —ZONING ORDINANCE <br />AMENDMENT NO. 2019-04 PROHIBITING <br />CYBER CAFES AS A PERMITTED USE <br />CITYWIDE {STRATEGIC PLAN NO. 5,4) <br />Prepared by Jerry C. Guevara <br />Q < <br />Executive Director <br />RECOMMENDED ACTION <br />*:1:11-3111i+a <br />PLANNING COMMISSION SECRETARY <br />APPROVED <br />❑ <br />As Recommended <br />❑ <br />As Amended <br />❑ <br />Set Public Hearing For <br />DENIED <br />❑ <br />Applicant's Request <br />❑ <br />Staff Recommendation <br />CONTINUED TO <br />%/1i�_--- - <br />Interim Planning Manager <br />Recommend that the City Council adopt an ordinance approving Zoning Ordinance Amendment <br />(ZOA) No. 2019-04 prohibiting cyber cafes as a permitted use citywide. <br />Project Background <br />There has been a proliferation of cyber cafe businesses in the City and statewide. Such businesses <br />are often connected to illegal gambling and other criminal activities. Some of the illicit operations are <br />in the form of "promotional sweepstakes," in which the business allows customers to play gambling- <br />themed games on computers to win cash prizes. Crime statistics and calls for service in the areas <br />of the City where cyber cafes have been established have increased significantly. The Santa Ana <br />Police Department (SAPD) identified 460 incidents occurring between January 1, 2018 and <br />September 2018 related to cyber cafes. These incidents included violent crime, loitering, illegal <br />gambling, illegal drug use and sales, burglaries, assaults, fights, theft, public intoxication, <br />vandalism, property damage, weapons offenses, and other criminal activities in and around cyber <br />cafes at various locations throughout the City. Some of these incidents have led to criminal arrests <br />for possession of firearms, narcotics, and stolen vehicles and parole/probation violations. <br />Based on these concerns, on October 16, 2018, the City Council adopted Urgency Ordinance No. <br />NS-2956 establishing a 45-day moratorium on the approval, commencement, establishment, <br />operation, relocation or expansion of cyber cafes within the City. On November 20, 2018, the City <br />Council extended the moratorium for an additional ten months and 15 days to allow staff time to <br />analyze cyber cafes and provide an enforcement plan and recommendations on whether to adopt a <br />regulatory ordinance permitting such establishments, institute operational guidelines, or adopt an <br />outright ban on cyber cafes. <br />75B-11 <br />