Opinion ID: 657360
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Reasonable Time, Place and Manner Restrictions

Text: 41 If the government seeks to control speech without reference to viewpoint, ordinances can contain reasonable time, place and manner restrictions. These restrictions, however, must serve significant government interests (narrowly tailored) and leave alternative avenues to communicate the same information. See Ward v. Rock Against Racism, 491 U.S. 781, 798, 109 S.Ct. 2746, 2757, 105 L.Ed.2d 661 (1989); Clark, 468 U.S. 288 at 293, 104 S.Ct. 3065 at 3069, 82 L.Ed.2d 221. If, however, the ordinance discriminates on the basis of viewpoint, such as allowing only communication of particular political or religious messages, the government would face a near insurmountable burden. See City of Cincinnati v. Discovery Network, Inc., --- U.S. ----, ----, 113 S.Ct. 1505, 1516, 123 L.Ed.2d 99 (1993) (noting that prohibiting the use of sound trucks because of noise must apply equally to music, political speech, and advertising.). Graff alleges that the ordinance controls speech content in several ways. Because the ordinance permits the newsstand to carry only newspapers, periodicals and similar publications, and favors the applicant who will carry the most daily publications, he claims it eliminates vendors who carry other expressive materials. He also complains that the newsstands' size limitation magnifies these impermissible restrictions. Chicago does not dispute these characteristics; rather it argues that they are necessary and reasonable time, place and manner restrictions. 42 This case resembles City of Renton, 475 U.S. 41, 106 S.Ct. 925, 89 L.Ed.2d 29. There the City of Renton, Washington, enacted a zoning ordinance to prohibit adult motion picture theaters from locating within a certain distance from residential, church, or school property. Id. at 43, 106 S.Ct. at 926. The Supreme Court determined that the ordinance 43 does not appear to fit neatly into either the content-based or the content-neutral category. To be sure, the ordinance treats theaters that specialize in adult films differently from other kinds of theaters. Nevertheless, as the district court concluded, the Renton ordinance is aimed not at the content of the films shown at adult motion picture theatres, but rather at the secondary effects of such theaters on the surrounding community. 44 Id. at 47, 106 S.Ct. at 929. The Court analyzed the ordinance by looking at the time, place and manner restrictions in the regulation. The Court held that the ordinance was justified without reference to content, was thus content-neutral, id. at 48, 106 S.Ct. at 929, and served a substantial government interest while allowing for reasonable alternatives of communication. Id. at 53, 106 S.Ct. at 933. Surely if a city can restrict speech through the planning, regulation, and zoning of property because of the secondary effects of adult motion pictures on the neighborhood, id., Young v. American Mini Theatres, Inc., 427 U.S. 50, 62, 96 S.Ct. 2440, 2448, 49 L.Ed.2d 310 (1976), Chicago should be allowed to regulate property on which newsstands could be located. Accord Cornelius, 473 U.S. at 799-800, 105 S.Ct. at 3447-48 (Nothing in the Constitution requires the Government freely to grant access to all who wish to exercise their right to free speech on every type of Government property without regard to the nature of the property or to the disruption that might be caused by the speaker's activities.). Here the time, place and manner restrictions are entirely reasonable. 45 Graff asserts that there is no showing that accommodating multiple uses of the public way and public safety requires an arbitrary size limitation on newsstands. The ordinance requires that the newsstand not occupy more than one-hundred and twenty square feet nor stand more than nine feet in height. Chicago Mun.Code Sec. 10-28-170. In addition, the newsstand must always allow pedestrians at least six feet of clear passage, and cannot be located within three feet of a property line. Id. at -185(b). This is the business of government. Chicago Observer, 929 F.2d at 329. We are not in a position to second-guess the city council's concerns. In any event, these restrictions are eminently reasonable. Pedestrians certainly should have access to enough space to walk on the sidewalks. Where structures block part of the sidewalk, pedestrians also have an interest in how far they must walk to get around them. In addition to being reasonable, these restrictions are content-neutral and do not constitute a prior restraint. 7 46 Chicago readily admits that the intended function of the ordinance is merely a preference for newsstands that maximize the number of newspapers sold. Apparently Graff wants to carry more than newspapers, periodicals and similar publications. He asserts that the ordinance is content-based because it does not allow newsstands to sell books or videotapes, relying on Discovery Network, Inc. v. City of Cincinnati, 946 F.2d 464 (6th Cir.1991). 8 There the district court held unconstitutional an ordinance that completely prohibited the distribution of commercial handbills on public property. The city had asserted its interests in safety and aesthetics, although it allowed newsracks to carry all other publications. The court of appeals concluded that the ordinance was an impermissible content-based restriction. 946 F.2d at 472, aff'd, --- U.S. at ----, 113 S.Ct. at 1516. In distinguishing City of Renton, the Sixth Circuit stated: Had Cincinnati produced evidence that the types of newsracks distributing commercial speech caused effects distinct from newsracks distributing newspapers, such as the clogging of downtown streets, ... the ordinance may have been constitutional under the secondary effects doctrine. Discovery Network, 946 F.2d at 472 n. 12. In affirming, the Supreme Court also noted that in contrast to City of Renton there were no distinguishing secondary effects attributable to newsracks containing commercial publications as compared to newsracks containing newspapers that would justify differing treatment. City of Cincinnati, --- U.S. at ----, 113 S.Ct. at 1517. Chicago, following this reasoning, notes that newspapers do not represent any favored viewpoints not represented in books or videotapes. The restrictions are simply an effort to reduce clutter on the public way, ... and facilitate the distribution of newspapers from a newsstand without undue obstruction of the public ways. 47 Certainly a city can regulate newsstands to reduce clutter on its streets. See Taxpayers for Vincent, 466 U.S. at 805, 104 S.Ct. at 2128. But Chicago has advanced no argument that books and videotapes clutter the streets any more than do newspapers. The assertion that newsstands themselves clutter the streets merely restates the issue. Chicago more convincingly argues that books and videotape sales would obstruct the flow of pedestrians. The city can recognize that people impulsively or routinely purchase newspapers in seconds. The more time-consuming purchase of books or videotapes, in contrast, would cause congregation and impede the flow of others who would then have to walk around not only the newsstand structure but the audience it attracted. See Heffron, 52 U.S. 640, 101 S.Ct. 2559, 69 L.Ed.2d 298. Also, browsers would block access to those who wanted to make a quick purchase of a newspaper. See Gannett Satellite Info. Net. v. Metro Transp. A., 745 F.2d 767, 773-4 (2d Cir.1984) (upholding as content neutral a regulation which allowed newspapers but not other vendors to install coin operated vending machines; the newspapers are in a privileged position and are not and will not become the victims of discrimination). 48 That the ordinance considers how many publications the newsstand will carry does not infringe, but rather promotes First Amendment interests. The ordinance clearly favors an applicant who has the higher, not the lower, proposed number of publications to be sold from the newsstand. This conceivably censors only the newsstand operator who himself might eliminate certain publications from distribution. In addition, an ordinance directed at the number of publications concerns quantity, not quality or content. Graff cites no case where an ordinance promoting more speech (in general) infringes the First Amendment. 49 Graff asserts that promoting the dailies serves to advance a message less controversial to the greatest number of people. This ignores the reality of the marketplace. The dailies succeed only because they sell to the greatest number of people, notwithstanding the government's perceived agreement with any particular viewpoint. Any notion that Chicago is promoting the dailies because based on past experience it is likely to agree with their future viewpoints is mitigated by the ordinance favoring the newsstand operator who sells the most dailies--an obvious attempt at variety, not indoctrination. Chicago argued in the district court that the Supreme Court has encouraged the promotion of daily publications over the sale of other expressive materials. As stated in Lakewood, 486 U.S. at 771, 108 S.Ct. at 2151, News is not fungible. Some stories may be particularly well covered by certain publications, providing that newspaper with a unique opportunity to develop readership. In order to benefit from that event, a paper needs public access at a particular time; eventual access would come too little and too late. The manner in which this ordinance regulates the newsstand operation allows that necessary access. 50 Graff finally argues that the time, place and manner restrictions are not narrowly tailored to serve the asserted governmental interests. See Ward, 491 U.S. at 796, 109 S.Ct. at 2756; City of Los Angeles v. Preferred, 476 U.S. 488, 106 S.Ct. 2034, 90 L.Ed.2d 480 (1986). Specifically, Graff argues the ordinance sets an arbitrary cap on the number of permits and that given the provision requiring minimum clearance around the newsstand, there is no reason for the arbitrary size limitation. He wants further discovery to show there are less restrictive alternatives. 51 The requirement of narrow tailoring is satisfied so long as the regulation promotes a substantial government interest that would be achieved less effectively absent the regulation. Ward, 491 U.S. at 799, 109 S.Ct. at 2758 (citations omitted). This test is not as heightened as Graff would have us believe. 52 So long as the means chosen are not substantially broader than necessary to achieve the government's interest, ... the regulation will not be invalid simply because a court concludes that the government's interest could be adequately served by some less-speech-restrictive alternative. 53 Id. at 800, 109 S.Ct. at 2758. Because Chicago has the ability to ban all newsstands, providing for some by a comprehensive permit scheme serves the people of Chicago well. The ordinance accommodates competing interests where pedestrians wish room to walk, several newsstand operators desire the same location, and tourists wish to take a picture of a famous landmark without a newsstand front and center. Without the permit ordinance, Chicago's interests would not only be achieved with less effectiveness, but would fail. The restrictions also leave open alternative channels for communication of the information. Id. at 802, 109 S.Ct. at 2760. Chicago not only teems with ads and with publications, Chicago Observer, 929 F.2d at 328, one can easily discern that the public has no problem picking up a newspaper, book or videotape, be it in stores that actually own their own property or from newsboys yelling out the headlines. 54 For the foregoing reasons, we conclude that the time, place and manner restrictions contained in the new ordinance are reasonable, are justified without reference to specific content, and are narrowly tailored to serve significant interests of the people of Chicago. Alternative channels are also available to communicate any speech otherwise restricted. 55