Lee's Summit, MO Business Licensing & Operations: Adult Entertainment (2026)

Two layers of city law govern adult businesses here. Code of Ordinances Sec. 3-101 makes it unlawful to operate or maintain an adult business without an adult business license from the City, and Sec. 3-102 requires a separate license for every entertainer, server or manager who works in one; operating or working unlicensed, or after a license is revoked or suspended, is itself a violation. On top of that licensing regime, Unified Development Ordinance Sec. 010 and Table 6-1, and only if it also satisfies UDO Sec.

140's conditions. 140 covers adult personal services: bath houses, body painting studios, escort or dating services and modeling studios. It bars such a use from locating within 1,250 feet of any church, school, day care facility, public building, public park, hospital, or area zoned or used for residential purposes, and caps the density of these uses by barring more than two Sec. 140 uses within 1,250 feet of each other. Distance is measured in a straight line, property line to property line, ignoring intervening structures.

UDO Sec. D lets the Governing Body waive the 1,250-foot restriction after Planning Commission review if the applicant proves by substantial and competent evidence that the use will not injure nearby properties, will not enlarge a blighted area under Missouri statute, and will not conflict with any neighborhood conservation or community renewal program.