Following an incident that appeared as though it might get a local strip club’s entertainment license revoked, city councilors agreed Tuesday night to add a "no touching" clause and then renewed the license for Planet Rock, according to a recently published report.
The Times Argus reported that councilors agreed the club's new entertainment license should include a provision that there be "no lewd contact" between the patrons and performers at the local club. The decision capped an animated discussion during which some city officials called for stricter license provisions and the lawyer for the club, Dan Sedon, repeatedly claimed his client was being unfairly penalized for an unsubstantiated allegation that was reported by a state liquor inspector last summer.
According to a report in the Times Argus, in July, liquor inspector Martin Prevost reported seeing "… a customer's head buried in a woman's breasts." However, according to the report, Sedon argued that lone complaint was never verified, no follow-up investigation was ever conducted and Garr was never given an opportunity to rebut Prevost's claims.
In the council meeting Tuesday, Sedon said he feared the council's refusal to approve Garr's entertainment license last month was a misguided attempt to blame his business for the city's ills.
"It seems apparent to everyone that Mr. Garr has become a symbol … of all that's wrong with Barre," Sedon said. "It's unfair scapegoating if that's what's happening."
According the Times Argus, Garr, who attended Tuesday's council meeting but let Sedon do most of the talking, was described by his lawyer as an exemplary nightclub owner with an otherwise spotless record. Sedon repeatedly objected to the council's consideration of restrictions he claimed were unwarranted given Garr's track record.
