A strip club owner has sued the city of Grand Rapids over a new measure barring nude dancing.
Mark London, owner of Sensations and Lady Godiva strip clubs, filed suit against the city last week in federal court over a new ordinance that bars total nudity at strip clubs and requires that dancers stay a minimum of six feet away from customers, according to the Grand Rapids Press.
London’s attorney is Gregory Fisher who four years ago won a similar case when he represented Velvet Touch adult bookstore in a suit over a zoning ordinance. The U.S. 6th Court of Appeals ruled in his favor, ordering the city to pay $125,000 in legal costs.
In his suit, London claims Grand Rapids’ ordinance violates the First, Fourth, Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments of the U.S. Constitution. He claims it doesn’t allow “reasonable opportunity” to operate an adult entertainment business and that there is no evidence to show that the clubs cause “adverse secondary effects” on the community.
London is seeking a temporary and a permanent restraining orders to stop the city from enforcing the measure and is seeking compensation for his legal costs from Grand Rapids.
But Mayor George Heartwell said the city will not back down, adding that it plans to hire an attorney for $100,000 to fight the case. Already, the Michigan Decency Council says it has $100,000 in pledges to pay the city’s legal bills.
The Black Hills Neighborhood Association told the newspaper that it has raised $102,000 to help in the legal fight. But Heartwell said the lawsuit should not cost more than about $70,000.
