Richmond, VA Business Licensing & Operations: Adult Entertainment (2026)

1(2), governing permitted uses in the B-3 commercial district, allows "adult entertainment establishments, adult book stores, adult motion picture theaters and massage parlors" only if the property is not situated within 1,000 feet of property in an R or RO residential district, nor within 1,000 feet of a church or other place of worship, a public or private elementary, intermediate or high school, a public library, a lodginghouse, emergency housing, transitional housing, permanent supportive housing, a tourist home, day care center, nursing home, hotel, motel, or another adult entertainment establishment, adult bookstore, adult motion picture theater, or massage parlor.

The same 1,000-foot spacing formula is repeated for the M-1 light industrial district. Because the use is not listed as permitted in residential (R), row house (RO), or most other zoning districts, an adult entertainment establishment can only be sited where the zoning ordinance affirmatively lists it and only after clearing every listed buffer, effectively confining the use to isolated pockets of B-3 and M-1 zoned land. Separately, Richmond City Code § 19-208 regulates conduct inside any adult entertainment establishment already operating: performers who are nude or seminude must stay at least one foot from the nearest patron and, if performing on a stage, the stage must be at least 24 inches above floor level; violation is a Class 1 misdemeanor for the performer and for any owner, manager, or person in control who knows or should know of the violation.