Dec. 8—In a step to further discourage adult entertainment facilities to locate in London, the city council unanimously approved another restriction for such facilities.

The first reading of a revised ordinance now requires any such establishment to be 1,000 feet from churches, schools, government offices, malls, library or other adult entertainment facilities. The original ordinance listed 500 feet, but was changed during Monday night's regular monthly meeting of the London City Council.

Council members said they had received many calls concerning the prior ordinance, with many believing that the council supported the location of such businesses in London.

"We don't want it here, and from the calls we've gotten, nobody else does either," said Councilman Daniel Carmack. "This is just another restriction against those."

Mayor Troy Rudder said he had received calls regarding establishing adult entertainment facilities in the area, which is what prompted the first ordinance, adding that adult entertainment facilities are popping up all along Interstate 75. Enacting the restrictive ordinance, he said, is to discourage such facilities from coming to London.

"Prior to that, we had no restrictions, which is why we did that," explained Councilman Danny Phelps.

City Attorney Larry Bryson said that the change of location from 500 feet to 1,000 feet is the sole change to the ordinance. The remainder of the ordinance is the same — restricting persons under age 18 from entry, requiring employees to be at least 21 years old, no alcohol served or brought into the facility, no touching of employees by patrons, employees remaining at least six feet from customers, and hours of operation complying with the alcohol sales restrictions of midnight to 9 a.m.

In other city council business, the turning lane in front of First State Bank, which continues to Third Street by the federal courthouse, will soon be eliminated to allow for parking spaces for the bank. Council members said bank officials had brought up the issue, stating that they are the only bank in town that does not offer Main Street parking spots. The turning lane will be removed just for those spots in front of the bank. The turning lane in front of the federal courthouse will remain to allow traffic to turn onto Third Street.

The council also heard from London Fire Chief Carl Hacker, who asked to accept bids on new air packs for firefighters. The sole bid ranged at $189,499 and will paid through COVID relief money. Hacker said the new air packs contained a communication system in which those inside a building could call for help as well as be warned of impending danger inside the facility. The new packs will also allow monitoring of the amount of air remaining, to further ensure the safety of the firefighters. Once that was approved, Hacker also requested placing 25 of the department's 31 current units as surplus equipment. Hacker said the remaining six units would be used for training purposes.

The bid for a new Dodge Durango for the city police department was also approved, with Chief Darryl Kilburn stating that Don Franklin was the sole bidder. The cost is $34,409 and the vehicles are currently in stock at that dealership.

London-Laurel Rescue Squad Chief John Allen also requested purchasing a 2005 Freightliner truck that will include a trailer stocked with equipment. Allen approached council members to explain that the department could refinance a current vehicle and see only a slight increase in payment. Allen said to restrict the bidding to seven days. He added that the Freightliner was in excellent shape and had at least $25,000 in equipment on the truck. Allen added that trailer contained an additional $30,000 of equipment.

City Streets Director Steve Edge asked to advertise for a dump truck for the city, explaining that the street crew had three dump trucks but were now down to only one. Edge asked for a seven-day bidding period, similar to what council members approved for the rescue squad.

Council members also approved an ordinance establishing the city clerk's position. Bryson said the city clerk's description had not been updated since 1983 and new ordinance would comply with current state laws. Under that new ordinance, the city clerk is a non-elected appointed position with a $500,000 bond. It also establishes the city clerk as the chief human resource officer, city treasurer and city finance officer.

Rudder was also authorized to sign for funding to the city from the opioid settlement, which will range between $275,000 to $394,000. However, that payment could be spread out for a nine-year period from Janssen, one of the four distributors of opioids. How that money may be earmarked is unknown.