Posted on 12/15/2006 12:02:29 PM PST by Diana in Wisconsin
Nude dancers will not be coming back to Pine Bluff, WI.
Efforts by the owners of the defunct Hot Rod's strip club to regain their liquor and adult entertainment licenses have failed, with Dane County Circuit Judge Angela Bartell ruling against the owners and in favor of the town.
"This is a major victory for Pine Bluff, which fought an uninvited strip club from the very beginning," said attorney Mark Hazelbaker, one of several attorneys working on the town's behalf in the case.
The owners had sued the town in June 2005, after the town revoked the liquor license for Hot Rod's, because the license holder, Kitt Kalscheur, wasn't operating the facility, which used to be known as Kitt's Korners. Pine Bluff is located south of Cross Plains in western Dane County.
When Hot Rod's opened Feb. 11, 2005, it caused a firestorm of protest from residents of Pine Bluff, who didn't want naked women dancing in a club right next to the town hall and down the street from St. Mary's of Pine Bluff Catholic Church.
The club opened a few days before Dane County enacted a zoning ordinance amendment which would have prevented any new adult entertainment clubs from opening without zoning approval.
The town took several months trying to figure out how to close the club down, deciding to go after the liquor license.
In May 2005, the Town Board held a six hour "trial" of Kalscheur and unanimously voted to revoke the liquor license, because control of the facility shifted to the new operators but the license had stayed in Kalscheur's name.
Jerry Wood, Rich Bickel and Robert Relph, partners of Bow Wow Entertainment LLC, operators of the strip club, also made a claim to the courts that the town's adult entertainment ordinance was unconstitutional and the club's license shouldn't be revoked.
Judge Bartell ruled both arguments were moot since Hot Rod's went out of business and a new liquor license had been issued by the town to brothers Kip and Kym Kalscheur, who in turn revamped the all-nude dancing club and turned it back into a sports and entertainment complex called the Red Mouse.
Attorney Jeff Olson, representing Bow-Wow, told The Capital Times that Bartell's decision was most likely the correct one, but he added that his clients still plan to pursue damages in a civil suit against the town.
"At this time, my clients are not in a position to utilize the adult entertainment license or the liquor license," Olson said. "But we will continue on with the civil rights damages action."
A scheduling conference has been set for Jan. 27 by Bartell on whether or not damages can be awarded.
The lawsuit from Hot Rod's operators was combined with a request from the town for judgment against the operators that the strip club was in violation of the town's zoning laws. Bartell's decision agreed with the town on the zoning law issue as well, so other than the damages part of the case, all other matters have been settled.
Ok, but what happens when a small subdivision bans flying flaggs including the stars and stripes.
It's just nice to see one of our small towns be able to keep out smut, that's all. Banning a strip club from a town doesn't necessarily lead to flag banning. Come visit this town. You'll see a flag on nearly every house. :)
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