Commerce City, CO Business Licensing & Operations: Adult Entertainment (2026)

Section 9-3601 defines a sexually oriented business to include an adult arcade, adult bookstore, adult video or gift shop, adult cabaret, adult motel, adult motion picture theater or adult theater, and section 9-3602 makes it unlawful to operate or cause to be operated any such business in Commerce City without first obtaining a license, with a separate license required for each specific business entity at each geographic location. The police department investigates every application under section 9-3603, the fire marshal, city and health department must inspect and certify the premises within thirty days under section 9-3604, and the city can deny an application under section 9-3605 for reasons including an underage applicant, overdue city taxes or fees, a revoked sexually oriented or adult business license anywhere in Colorado within the prior year, or a specified criminal conviction.

Section 9-3607 further requires a registered manager or owner of record on the premises at all times the business is open, with a manager's registration fee set by city council resolution. Beyond the license, the Land Development Code separately restricts where a sexually oriented business may locate: section 21-5262 keeps it at least a thousand feet from the boundary of any public or residential zone district, an existing or occupied mobile home, a single-family or multifamily residence, a church, a school, a licensed child care facility, a public park or community center, and any other adult entertainment use, whether that neighboring use sits inside or outside city limits.

An existing licensed business is not forced out if a nearby rezoning later brings a protected use closer, so long as it keeps its license and zoning compliance.