Colorado Springs requires licenses for adult-use businesses starting Oct. 5
The rules apply to covered businesses seeking to operate in the city. Qualifying existing nonconforming uses are exempt from the separate Adult Use Permit requirement, but not from licensing.
Colorado Springs City Council adopted Ordinance 26-54 on Sept. 22, requiring covered adult-use businesses to obtain a city license before operating under rules that take effect Oct. 5, 2026. The signed ordinance lists adult arcades, bookstores and video stores, cabarets, motels, motion-picture theaters, adult theaters, sexual-encounter establishments and similar businesses.
A license generally lasts one year. Applicants must meet city licensing criteria and submit background information, a diagram of the premises and other required materials. The Fire Department and city licensing authority must inspect the premises. Businesses must also register managers with the City Clerk.
Most applicants must provide an approved Adult Use Permit from the Planning Manager showing compliance with the city’s Unified Development Code. The ordinance exempts a business that qualifies as an existing nonconforming use under that code from the permit requirement, but not from the separate business-license requirement.
The city code’s definition generally covers a use that was lawfully established and continued but no longer meets current code requirements because of government action rather than the property owner’s actions. The code allows qualifying nonconforming uses to continue under restrictions, and that status can end if normal operation is discontinued for 12 consecutive months. Whether a particular business qualifies depends on its location and use history; the ordinance does not identify specific businesses.
The rules prohibit anyone under 18 from entering licensed premises. Businesses generally may not open or admit patrons from 2 a.m. to 7 a.m. Monday through Saturday or from 2 a.m. to 8 a.m. Sunday; the hours restriction does not apply to private rooms in adult motels. The ordinance also sets requirements for lighting, clothing and contact, inspections and premises layouts. Adult cabarets and theaters must use a fixed stage, with patrons kept at least three feet from its edge. Premises with peep booths face additional monitoring and booth requirements.
Operating without a license is unlawful. The ordinance does not provide existing operators a separate application deadline, phase-in date or grace period beyond its Oct. 5 effective date. It authorizes license suspension or revocation for violations and requires revocation in specified serious cases.