Houston Code of Ordinances § 21-236 Definitions.
Sec. 21-236. - Definitions.
The following words, terms and phrases, whenever used in this article, shall have the meanings ascribed to them in this section, unless the context of their usage clearly indicates a different meaning:
Bar means an establishment that is devoted to the serving of alcoholic beverages for consumption by guests on the premises and derives at least 60 percent of gross revenues from the sale of alcoholic beverages for on premise consumption, including, but not limited to, any tavern, nightclub, cocktail lounge, or cabaret.
Business means a sole proprietorship, partnership, joint venture, corporation, or other business entity, either for-profit or not-for-profit, including any retail establishment where goods or services are sold; any professional corporation or other entity where legal, medical, dental, engineering, architectural, or other professional services are delivered.
Electronic smoking device means any device with a heating element, battery, or electronic circuit that delivers nicotine or any other substance intended for human consumption by inhalation. The term includes every variation and type of such device whether manufactured, distributed, marketed, or sold as an electronic cigarette, an electronic cigar, an electronic cigarillo, an electronic pipe, an electronic hookah, vaping device, or any other product name or descriptor, and any aerosol, liquid, or vapor used in such a device.
Employee means a person who is employed by an employer in consideration for direct or indirect monetary wages or profit, and a person who volunteers his services for a non-profit entity or provides such services on a contract basis.
Employer means a person, business, partnership, association, corporation, including a municipal corporation, trust, or non-profit entity that employs the services of one or more individuals.
Enclosed, when used in reference to an area or a building or portion thereof, means closed in on all sides from floor to ceiling by solid walls, with or without windows and exclusive of doorways.
Health care facility means an office or institution providing care or treatment of diseases, whether physical, mental, or emotional, or other medical, physiological, or psychological conditions, including, but not limited to, any hospital, rehabilitation hospital or other clinic, including any weight control clinic, nursing home, home for the aging or chronically ill, laboratory, or the office of any surgeon, chiropractor, physical therapist, physician, dentist, or specialist within these professions. This definition shall include all waiting rooms, hallways, private rooms, semiprivate rooms, and wards within a health care facility.
Meeting facility means a building designed, operated and used primarily for private functions.
Place of employment means an enclosed area under the control of a public or private employer where employees work or to which employees have access during the course of employment including, but not limited to, work areas, private offices, employee lounges, restrooms, conference rooms, meeting rooms, classrooms, employee cafeterias, hallways, and vehicles. A private residence is not a "place of employment" unless it is used as a child care, adult day care, or health care facility.
Private function means a gathering of individuals for the purpose of deliberation, education, instruction, entertainment, amusement, or dining, where specific invitation is a prerequisite to entry and where the event is not intended to be open to the public.
Public pedestrian plaza means a public street right-of-way that has been permanently closed to vehicular traffic but is open to pedestrian passage.
Public place means an enclosed area to which the public is invited or in which the public is permitted, including, but not limited to:
(1) Aquariums, galleries, libraries, and museums;
(2) Areas available to and customarily used by the general public in businesses;
(3) Bars;
(4) Bingo facilities;
(5) Child care and adult day care facilities;
(6) Convention facilities;
(7) Educational facilities, both public and private;
(8) Elevators;
(9) Gaming facilities;
(10) Governmental facilities, including buildings and vehicles;
(11) Health care facilities;
(12) Hotels and motels;
(13) Lobbies, hallways, and other common areas in apartment buildings, condominiums, retirement facilities, nursing homes, and other multiple-unit residential facilities;
(14) Polling places;
(15) Pool and billiard halls;
(16) Public transportation facilities, including buses and taxicabs, and ticket, boarding, and waiting areas of public transit depots;
(17) Restaurants;
(18) Restrooms, lobbies, reception areas, hallways, and other common-use areas;
(19) Retail establishments;
(20) Service lines;
(21) Shopping malls;
(22) Sports arenas; and
(23) Theaters and other facilities primarily used for exhibiting motion pictures, stage dramas, lectures, musical recitals, or other similar performances.
A private residence is not a "public place" unless used as a child care, adult day care, or health care facility.
Restaurant means food service establishment, including but not limited to, any coffee shop, cafeteria, sandwich stand, and private and public school cafeteria, that gives or offers for sale food to the public, guests, or employees, as well as any kitchen or catering facility in which food is prepared on the premises for serving elsewhere. The term "restaurant" shall include a bar area within the restaurant.
Retail tobacco store means any retail establishment utilized primarily for the sale of tobacco products, electronic smoking devices, and related accessories in which the sale of other products, including food and beverages, does not exceed 40 percent of gross revenues.
Service line means an indoor line in which one or more persons are waiting for or receiving service of any kind, whether or not the service involves the exchange of money.
Shopping mall means an enclosed public walkway or hall area that serves to connect customer entrances to two or more retail or other businesses and is used for customer pedestrian traffic.
Smoking means inhaling, exhaling, burning, or carrying any lighted cigar, cigarette, pipe, hookah, electronic smoking device, or any other lighted tobacco product, plant material, or other combustible substance.
Sports arena means any sports pavilion, stadium, gymnasium, health spa, boxing arena, swimming pool, roller and ice rink, bowling alley, pool hall or other similar place where members of the general public assemble to engage in physical exercise, participate in athletic competition, or witness sports or other events.
Tobacco bar means a bar in which the on site sales or rentals of tobacco products and smoking accessories for consumption or use on the premises exceeds 20 percent of gross revenues and into which entry is restricted to individuals 18 years of age and above.
(Ord. No. 02-800, § 1, 8-28-02; Ord. No. 05-245, § 1, 3-9-05; Ord. No. 06-1054, § 2, 10-18-06; Ord. No. 2014-894, §§ 2, 3, 10-1-2014; Ord. No. 2022-233, §§ 2—4, 3-30-2022)