STRIP-BAR REGS LOOK LIKELY

The Cape Girardeau City Council Monday night agreed to strictly regulate strip-tease businesses, prompting a lawyer's threat of a lawsuit on constitutional grounds.

Lawyer David Rosener, who represents a strip-tease bar, blasted the council for considering such a regulation. He said his client, Regina's House of Dolls, would sue the city if the council passes such an ordinance.

The council is scheduled to vote on a regulatory measure at its March 6 meeting.

"Nobody is going to railroad this business out of town," Rosener said after listening to the council discuss the restrictions it wants to impose.

"We are going to have the women dancing just as always," Rosener said.

City Attorney Warren Wells dismissed the threat of a lawsuit. "We think we are on solid ground," he told reporters. He said federal courts have upheld similar restrictions in other states.

Donna Miller of Cape Girardeau, an outspoken critic of strip-tease bars, praised the council's action. "It is a step in the right direction," she said. "Other cities have regulated these businesses out of town."

The council wants to impose strict zoning and licensing restrictions, ban nude dancing and limit contact between dancers and customers. Dancers, at a minimum, would have to wear G-strings and pasties.

Customers wouldn't be able to tip the dancers by placing money in their G-strings and would have to stay at least 10 feet away from on-stage dancers.

Rosener contended the proposed restrictions are unconstitutional and that council members simply hope to get re-elected.

But council members voiced concern that strip-tease places could lead to increased crime and vandalism. They also said there was a strong public outcry against strip-tease establishments.

"Make no mistake: The citizens of Cape Girardeau are very concerned about this type of activity," Councilman Melvin Gateley said.

At a more-than-hourlong meeting attended by Rosener and a handful of strip-tease opponents, the council agreed to draft restrictions patterned after an ordinance adopted in the Kansas City suburb of Gladstone.

The measure regulates all forms of adult entertainment and imposes everything from zoning to licensing restrictions.

It would apply to all strip-tease places regardless of whether they serve alcohol.

Cape Girardeau would license all adult entertainment businesses. Everyone from the manager to the dancers would have to obtain annual licenses.

The police would conduct background checks on such businesses and their employees.

The Gladstone ordinance requires all license applicants to be fingerprinted and photographed. As with the Gladstone law, Cape Girardeau councilmen want to impose strict zoning requirements.

Adult establishments wouldn't be allowed within 1,000 feet of any school, church, public park, licensed child-care center or home, any residentially zoned property or other adult entertainment business.

Unlike licensing and other regulations, the zoning restrictions can't be applied to existing establishments, city officials said.

There are two strip-tease bars in town. The other is The Alibi Club on Christine, a bar that is less than 1,000 feet from a residential area.