OKC Adult Novelty Store Owners Feel Targeted By Old Ordinance

An adult novelty store in Northwest OKC feels unfairly targeted.

After opening its doors, the owners of Adam & Eve, at 70th and May, say the City told them the store was in violation of an ordinance.

That ordinance, passed in 1997, says an adult novelty store can't be within 1,000 feet of a school, park, church or home. 

The City says it enforces ordinances after receiving a complaint. The City won’t say who complained about the Adam & Eve.

The state adopted the same ordinance after the City.

The owners of the Adam & Eve location say other retailers, including drug stores, also sell adult novelty items and are in violation of the same ordinance.

“They are on the shelves. They are in visibility of children,” says Adam & Eve owner Andrew Ryerson-Gonzalez about the products sold elsewhere.

Ryerson-Gonzalez and his husband say they both used their 401K’s to pay for the building and did their due diligence when purchasing the building.

Both says the ordinance cannot be found in zoning codes.

The City tells News 9 its now trying to figure out how to address the issue. 

During the January 16^th City Council meeting, Councilman Ed Shadid suggested eliminating the ordinance and leaving enforcement up to the state.