Pasadena, CA Business Licensing & Operations: Adult Entertainment (2026)

040 requires a valid sexually oriented business permit to operate and a valid employee permit for anyone working at one. 050 lets the city manager deny a permit for an applicant under 18, incomplete or false information, an unpaid fee, a location that violates the Zoning Code, a nuisance finding or closure order against the applicant's prior business within five years, or a conviction for specified criminal activity such as prostitution or obscenity offenses. 295 confines sexually oriented businesses to the CG zoning district, bars them entirely from the Lincoln Corridor (CG-1), requires 500 feet from any child day-care center, park, school or religious facility that predates the business, requires 250 feet from any RS or RM residential district, and caps the concentration at no more than two such businesses within a 250-foot radius of each other.

m. 180 prohibits full nudity or specified sexual activity on the premises, limits semi-nude performers to a stage at least 18 inches high in a room of at least 1,000 square feet and requires them to stay at least six feet from patrons, bars touching between employees and patrons, bars alcohol or drug possession on the premises, and bars anyone under 18 from the premises. 150 requires posted no-loitering signs, exterior lighting, and monitoring by an employee inspecting the property at least every 90 minutes or by continuous video. 100.