Sec 4-207. Restrictions on licensing premises near school or church buildings; definitions

A. A retailer's license shall not be issued for any premises that are, at the time the license application is received by the director, within three hundred horizontal feet of a church, within three hundred horizontal feet of a public or private school building with kindergarten programs or any of grades one through twelve or within three hundred horizontal feet of a fenced recreational area adjacent to such school building. This section does not prohibit the renewal of a valid license issued pursuant to this title if, on the date that the original application for the license is filed, the premises were not within three hundred horizontal feet of a church, within three hundred horizontal feet of a public or private school building with kindergarten programs or any of grades one through twelve or within three hundred horizontal feet of a fenced recreational area adjacent to such school building.

B. Subsection A of this section does not apply to a:

1. Restaurant issued a license pursuant to section 4-205.02.

2. Special event license issued pursuant to section 4-203.02.

3. Hotel-motel issued a license pursuant to section 4-205.01.

4. Government license issued pursuant to section 4-205.03.

5. Playing area of a golf course issued a license pursuant to this article.

6. A beer and wine license at a not-for-profit performing arts theatre with a permanent seating capacity of at least two hundred fifty persons.

C. Notwithstanding subsection A of this section:

1. A transferable spirituous liquor license that is validly issued and that is, on the date an application for a transfer is filed, within three hundred horizontal feet of a church, within three hundred horizontal feet of a public or private school building with kindergarten programs or any of grades one through twelve or within three hundred horizontal feet of a fenced recreational area adjacent to such school building may be transferred person to person pursuant to sections 4-201, 4-202 and 4-203 and remains in full force until the license is terminated in any manner, unless renewed pursuant to section 4-209, subsection A.

2. A person may be issued a spirituous liquor license pursuant to sections 4-201, 4-202 and 4-203 of the same class for premises that on the date the application is filed, have a valid transferable or nontransferable license of the same series if the premises are, on the date an application for such license is filed, within three hundred horizontal feet of a church, within three hundred horizontal feet of a public or private school building with kindergarten programs or any of grades one through twelve or within three hundred horizontal feet of a fenced recreational area adjacent to such school building and the license remains in full force until the license is terminated in any manner, unless renewed pursuant to section 4-209, subsection A.

3. A person may be issued a liquor store license pursuant to sections 4-201, 4-202, 4-203 and 4-206.01 for premises that have a beer and wine store license validly issued if the premises, on the date an application for such license is filed, are within three hundred horizontal feet of a church, within three hundred horizontal feet of a public or private school building with kindergarten programs or any of grades one through twelve or within three hundred horizontal feet of a fenced recreational area adjacent to such school building and the license remains in full force until the license is terminated in any manner, unless renewed pursuant to section 4-209, subsection A.

4. The governing body of a city or town, on a case-by-case basis, may approve an exemption from the distance restrictions prescribed in this section for a church or a public or private school that is located in an area that is designated an entertainment district by the governing body of that city or town. A city or town with a population of at least five hundred thousand persons may designate no more than three entertainment districts within the boundaries of the city or town pursuant to this paragraph. A city or town with a population of at least two hundred thousand persons but less than five hundred thousand persons may designate no more than two entertainment districts within the boundaries of the city or town pursuant to this paragraph. A city or town with a population of less than two hundred thousand persons may designate no more than one entertainment district within the boundaries of the city or town pursuant to this paragraph.

5. A person may be issued a beer and wine store license pursuant to sections 4-201, 4-202, 4-203 and 4-206.01 for premises that have a liquor store license validly issued if the premises, on the date of an application for which the license is filed, are within three hundred horizontal feet of a church, within three hundred horizontal feet of a public or private school building with kindergarten programs or any of grades one through twelve or within three hundred horizontal feet of a fenced recreation area adjacent to such school building and the license remains in full force until the license is terminated in any manner, unless renewed pursuant to section 4-209, subsection A.

D. For the purposes of this section:

1. "Church" means a building which is erected or converted for use as a church, where services are regularly convened, that is used primarily for religious worship and schooling and that a reasonable person would conclude is a church by reason of design, signs or architectural or other features.

2. "Entertainment district" means a specific contiguous area that is designated an entertainment district by a resolution adopted by the governing body of a city or town, that consists of no more than one square mile, that is no less than one-eighth of a mile in width and that contains a significant number of entertainment, artistic and cultural venues, including music halls, concert facilities, theaters, arenas, stadiums, museums, studios, galleries, restaurants, bars and other related facilities.