TY - JOUR
T1 - Legal geographies-controlling sexually oriented businesses
T2 - law, licensing, and the geographies of a controversial land use
AU - Hubbard, Phil
AU - Matthews, Roger
AU - Scoular, Jane
PY - 2009/2
Y1 - 2009/2
N2 - In this article, we explore both a neglected geography (the location of sexually oriented business) and a neglected instrument of sociospatial control (premises licensing). Arguing the former is increasingly shaped by the latter, we suggest that licensing provides a flexible means by which the state is able to reconcile the growing demand for "adult entertainment" with concerns about community standards, urban aesthetics, public safety, and property prices. We demonstrate this through an examination of the role of UK licensing legislation in controlling the location and visibility of such controversial businesses in London's West End. It is demonstrated that, in this case, licensing has encouraged the "upscaling" of sex-related businesses while reducing their overall number and visibility. We conclude that licensing, as a means of controlling contentious urban land uses, constitutes a "field of governance" whose legal geographies remain to be adequately theorized and explored.
AB - In this article, we explore both a neglected geography (the location of sexually oriented business) and a neglected instrument of sociospatial control (premises licensing). Arguing the former is increasingly shaped by the latter, we suggest that licensing provides a flexible means by which the state is able to reconcile the growing demand for "adult entertainment" with concerns about community standards, urban aesthetics, public safety, and property prices. We demonstrate this through an examination of the role of UK licensing legislation in controlling the location and visibility of such controversial businesses in London's West End. It is demonstrated that, in this case, licensing has encouraged the "upscaling" of sex-related businesses while reducing their overall number and visibility. We conclude that licensing, as a means of controlling contentious urban land uses, constitutes a "field of governance" whose legal geographies remain to be adequately theorized and explored.
KW - sexuality
KW - legal geography licensing
KW - sex-related business
UR - http://www.tandfonline.com/toc/rurb20/current
U2 - 10.2747/0272-3638.30.2.185
DO - 10.2747/0272-3638.30.2.185
M3 - Article
SN - 0272-3638
VL - 30
SP - 185
EP - 205
JO - Urban Geography
JF - Urban Geography
IS - 2
ER -