Zoning ordinance could block prison role-playing at local jail

     The new owner of the former Franklin County Jail has altered rules for the facility in an attempt to bring future business activities into compliance with local zoning ordinances.
     Hampton City Manager Ron Dunt informed jail owner Mark Gudmundsen last Wednesday that plans for the building included possible “adult-oriented” activities. Gudmundsen, who purchased the jail from Ryan and Kelsey Card in mid-March, intends to open a role-playing business for individuals who want to experience prison without committing a crime. The Arizona man also plans to offer ghost tours and other programs.
     However, city officials claimed some of those activities “appear to be adult entertainment.”
     “If he chooses to open and offer the activities that are on the [jail’s] website, it’s our position that they could be violations and we’ll enforce our ordinance,” Dunt said last week.
     Read the full article in the April 6 edition of the Hampton Chronicle.