Purpose and Intent
San Diego Municipal Code § 33.1501
in effect§33.1501 Purpose and Intent
The Council of the City of San Diego encourages the development of arts and culture in San Diego, and recognizes that many entertainment venues provide a means for such development. The Council of the City of San Diego further recognizes that the variety of entertainment venues in the City provide a rich and diverse cultural experience for the residents of the City and visitors to the City. The Council also recognizes that many non-alcoholic entertainment venues provide a safe place for families and young adults to gather.
The Council of the City of San Diego finds that the operations of entertainment establishments present an environment with the demonstrated potential for excessive noise generation and disorderly conduct by patrons, particularly at closing times, with the attendant adverse public safety impact on the surrounding business and residential community.
Therefore, it is the purpose of this Division to regulate the operations of entertainment establishments for the public safety. All permittees will be held responsible for controlling patron conduct in and around the establishments, making adequate provisions for security and crowd control, protecting the City’s youth from criminal activity and minimizing disturbances as a result of the operation of the entertainment.
It is also the intent of this Division to provide options to the Chief of Police in regulating the variety of businesses and events which provide entertainment. Council finds that the imposition of conditions tailored to the particular establishment will allow the business or event to flourish while meeting the City’s public safety needs and avoiding unnecessary conditions on existing businesses or organizations which would change the mode of operation of a law-abiding business or organization with a history of compliance with the City laws.
(Retitled to “Purpose and Intent” and amended 11–20–2000 by O–18887 N.S.)
Source: City of San Diego Office of the City Clerk, San Diego Municipal Code and City Charter (docs.sandiego.gov PDFs)URL: https://docs.sandiego.gov/municode/MuniCodeChapter03/Ch03Art03Division15.pdf#page=1Fetched: 10/28/2026