Town Buys & Closes Cafe Risque

[Dale]

If you can't beat them in court, buy them out!


AP Story
Town spends $1 million to buy, shut strip club

Lavonia officials bought Cafe Risque as a way to close it down



updated 6:01 p.m. ET, Thurs., July. 31, 2008
LAVONIA, Ga. - A small town in northeast Georgia has bought a strip club, but it's not planning to get into the adult entertainment business.


$1 million spent to buy, close strip club - Weird news- msnbc.com


http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/25955847/

*

*

 

[katautumn]

Only in in my home-state here do we totally lack priorities. Cleaner water or burning teh ebull spirits out of a strip club sign?

 

[clarksided]

Seriously, if I was a taxpayer in this town, I'd be beyond livid. Do...something...useful...with..my..tax...dollars!

 

[katautumn]

Seriously, if I was a taxpayer in this town, I'd be beyond livid. Do...something...useful...with..my..tax...dollars!

Unfortunately, they had the funds set aside for something useful. Apparently puritanical society is more beneficial than better drinking water. I mean, hey, I'm not a fan of sleazy truck stop strip clubs. They're an eyesore and can bring in unsavories, but come on. If you have the money to achieve both goals, great, but pick the one that will most benefit the city, not give the old coots citing on the city council the jollies because they finally got their way. The sign burning incident is very telling.

 

[ladyt28]

why didn't they just pass those laws restricting how close customers can get to the dancers? Seems like those laws sure make these clubs move (and the police like to make certain no one is breaking that law! lol)

 

[psalm511013]

Good for the town. Slime is nothing a community has to tolerate, either in its drinking water or in its entertainment choices. If anyone in Livonia is "livid" I'm sure he or she will cast their vote accordingly at the next municipal election. The bond fund payoff will continue through assessments I'm sure have been included in the residents' water bills since the treatment plant upgrade, so I wouldn't worry about it too much if you don't live there. I wouldn't worry about it too much even if yo do live there.

Supporting smut in the name of "expedient expenditures" is pretty lame. I'm sure the town loved the fact the club was shut down.

 

[clarksided]

Maybe since I live in New Orleans I'm realistic about how harmless strip clubs are.

 

[Donkeytron]

Supporting smut in the name of "expedient expenditures" is pretty lame. I'm sure the town loved the fact the club was shut down.

Indeed. I support smut because I like smut!

 

[Dale]

Clarksided:
"Maybe since I live in New Orleans I'm realistic about how harmless strip clubs are."

Several notorious killers have been strip club addicts, like Tokars in Atlanta.

 

[Washington]

Clarksided:
"Maybe since I live in New Orleans I'm realistic about how harmless strip clubs are."

Several notorious killers have been strip club addicts, like Tokars in Atlanta.

There ya go! That proves strip clubs are nothing but spawning grounds for notorious killers. Get rid of strip clubs and we'll be rid of notorious killers. Why didn't someone think of this before????

 

[Illuminatus]

Clarksided:
"Maybe since I live in New Orleans I'm realistic about how harmless strip clubs are."

Several notorious killers have been strip club addicts, like Tokars in Atlanta.

Hitler ate lettuce. Death to lettuce!

 

[Donkeytron]

Clarksided:
"Maybe since I live in New Orleans I'm realistic about how harmless strip clubs are."

Several notorious killers have been strip club addicts, like Tokars in Atlanta.

Are you being serious here or are you being goofy? I can be hard to tell on CF sometimes.

e.g. the FBI turncoat Robert Hanssen was a notoriously devote catholic, therefore we can get rid of intelligence leaks by getting rid of catholic churches!

 

[Caylin]

Clarksided:
"Maybe since I live in New Orleans I'm realistic about how harmless strip clubs are."

Several notorious killers have been strip club addicts, like Tokars in Atlanta.

Several killers have been white christian men. Guess we better close down the churches.

 

[Dale]

The folks here are being far too dismissive.
Try this link to the site of a former stripper.


"Most, if not all, strip clubs are fronts for drug trafficking, prostitution, and money laundering. "

"I knew a wonderful person, a young man who worked security at a strip club, who was killed by a drug dealer who dealt out of his club. I also knew a patron who was shot dead at my club in some drug related altercation. "


Saved From Strip Clubs:
http://www.savedfromstripclubs.org/stripclubsandviolence.htm



From another link off of the same site:

"Excerpted from a 1999 study by Kelly Holsopple."

"100% of the women reported physical abuse in the club.

100% of the women reported sexual abuse in the club."


Porn Myth 2
http://www.oneangrygirl.net/Life_of_the_Stripper.html

 

[SallyNow]

Most towns need more affordable housing. Think of how many affordable housing units could be set up for $1,000,000!

Or how many after-school programs!

Or how many sports programs!

Or how many career-training programs!

Or how many waterways could be cleaned up!

Why not just ban strip clubs in the area (of course, then they'll just move outside of city limits...)

Just think of that $1,000,000 had been set aside as scholarship money for the workers at the club, many of whom may have been just trying to make ends meet by working at the club.

But no, instead, it was wasted by buying the club out.

 

[psalm511013]

Maybe since I live in New Orleans I'm realistic about how harmless strip clubs are.

Oh, yeah, harmless. For years, officers of the law have complained about the secondary effects of strip clubs. Strip club case files speak volumes. When a strip club moves in, officers say, crime goes up and property values go down. Arrests and assaults increase along with the potential for blight and the neighborhood's overall crime index.

Most towns need more affordable housing. Think of how many affordable housing units could be set up for $1,000,000!

Most small towns have affordable housing. Its the cities where people can't afford to live.

Or how many after-school programs!

Or how many sports programs!

Or how many career-training programs!

Or how many waterways could be cleaned up!

Given the information I posted in response to Clark, I think saving what the town has might be deemed more important initially than funding these things. And how do you know Lavonia doesn't already have these things? You're making a massive assumption that may be incorrect.

Why not just ban strip clubs in the area (of course, then they'll just move outside of city limits...)

Then the County can pass an ordinance banning them, or refuse to grant a liquor license, or any other measure that would prevent them from opening. You and others seem to be a lot more upset about this than the citizens of Lavonia are.

After all, it's their tax money. They had to have had a say in this process and it appears they are quite happy about what was done with their $1 million.

Just think of that $1,000,000 had been set aside as scholarship money for the workers at the club, many of whom may have been just trying to make ends meet by working at the club.

But no, instead, it was wasted by buying the club out.

I don't think the people of Lavonia thought it was a waste, or it wouldn't have happened. Chill out. It will be OK. Strip clubs elsewhere still thrive.

 

[moonkitty]

LOL I just drove by the Café a few days ago on my way home from Tennessee. LOL. I always get a laugh over the billboards. I’m kind of sad to see it go.

 

[clarksided]

Psalm, you can't just use anecdotal evidence. If I'm going to respond to you assertion that Strip Clubs raise crime and lower property values, I need some sources first. I can't even critically assess the data without those.

Also, I will give that strip clubs probably are a lot less harmful in cities (like NO) than in small towns, which this place apparently was. Still an enormous waste of cash to buy it out, though.

 

[psalm511013]

Psalm, you can't just use anecdotal evidence. If I'm going to respond to you assertion that Strip Clubs raise crime and lower property values, I need some sources first. I can't even critically assess the data without those.

It's pretty much common knowledge, but if you insist ...

http://www.alliancealert.org/2008/02/27/wonder-what-happens-at-strip-clubs/
http://www.nbc24.com/news/news_story.aspx?id=71611 (re: Cal-Irvine prof's analysis of crime in and around strip clubs)
http://blog.oregonlive.com/nwheadlines/2008/06/feds_bust_colacurcio_crime_fam.html (re: prostitution in clubs led to federal indictments)
http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qa4441/is_200411/ai_n16056864 (re: Memphis strip club owners arrested for promoting prostitution)

Strip clubs are not harmless. Prostitution is not "victimless." Strip clubs are not legitimate businesses, even though they try to appear and act as though they are legitimate. The owners are generally sleazy low-level covers for higher-ups in organized crime, promotion of drug abuse and dealing is a generally accepted activity in their vicinity, and they drive truly legitimate business away. Where you find strip clubs, you find crime, and I'm positive that's not something Livonia nor any other small town wants to promote.

 

[clarksided]

Just to be clear, I wasn't accusing you of lying or anything.

Also, thanks. I'll look over those later today (I'm about to go work out, sorry).