428
Syllabus
ing them to separate will have one of two results: One business will either move elsewhere or close. The city's premise cannot be the latter. The premise must be that businesses—even those that have always been under one roof—will for the most part disperse rather than shut down, that the quantity of speech will be substantially undiminished, and that total secondary effects will be significantly reduced. As to whether there is sufficient evidence to support this proposition, the Court has consistently held that a city must have latitude to experiment, at least at the outset, and that very little evidence is required. See, e. g., Renton, supra, at 51-52. Here, the proposition to be shown is supported by common experience and a study showing a correlation between the concentration of adult establishments and crime. Assuming that the study supports the city's original dispersal ordinance, most of the necessary analysis follows. To justify the ordinance at issue, the city may infer—from its study and from its own experience—that two adult businesses under the same roof are no better than two next door, and that knocking down the wall between the two would not ameliorate any undesirable secondary effects of their proximity to one another. If the city's first ordinance was justified, therefore, then the second is too. Pp. 449-453.
(d) Because these considerations seem well enough established in common experience and the Court's case law, the ordinance survives summary judgment. P. 453.
O'Connor, J., announced the judgment of the Court and delivered an opinion, in which Rehnquist, C. J., and Scalia and Thomas, JJ., joined. Scalia, J., filed a concurring opinion, post, p. 443. Kennedy, J., filed an opinion concurring in the judgment, post, p. 444. Souter, J., filed a dissenting opinion, in which Stevens and Ginsburg, JJ., joined, and in which Breyer, J., joined as to Part II, post, p. 453.
Michael L. Klekner argued the cause for petitioner. With him on the briefs were James K. Hahn, Rockard J. Delgadillo, Claudia McGee Henry, Anthony Saul Alperin, and Jeri Burge.
John H. Weston argued the cause for respondent. With him on the briefs was G. Randall Garrou.*
*Briefs of amici curiae urging reversal were filed for the State of Ohio et al. by Betty D. Montgomery, Attorney General of Ohio, David M. Gormley, State Solicitor, and Elise W. Porter, joined by the Attorneys General for their respective jurisdictions as follows: Bill Pryor of Ala-
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