MEMPHIS, Tenn. – City Council Chair Tom Marshall has urged the council to take a closer look at a proposed adult entertainment ordinance before making a final decision. Marshall told the council on Monday to delay action on regulating strip clubs until 2008.
A strict ordinance approved by the County Commission earlier this year to take effect Jan. 1 bans the sale of alcohol in strip clubs and requires dancers to wear pasties. Clubs would also have to get a license from a new five-member citizen board. By contrast, a city council proposal allows topless dancing and permits the sale of beer in strip clubs. If adopted, the city law would trump the county rules.
Shelby County DA General Bill Gibbons urged the council to adopt the strict county ordinance in place of the more permissive laws proposed by the city. Gibbons wants to use the state's Adult-Oriented Establishment Registration Act — which council adopted in 1998 and has withstood at least two legal challenges — to prosecute offenders.
The proposed city ordinance was added to the full council's agenda in November and approved on first reading. The issue has created waves of protest from both sides; adult entertainment venues and their supporters on one side and critics who favor the county law on the other.
“It's like we're doing this under the gun, and there's no reason for it,” Marshall told the Commercial Appeal. “It should be studied cautiously and carefully, so there's very little room for error.”
The city ordinance is scheduled for review by the council today.
City officials told the council that $2 million in revenue generated from the sale of beer in adult clubs would be lost if the city does not override the county law.
