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COMMUNITY
The Pink Pony strip club is
located in Brookhaven.
“Except for [Districts] 5 and 10,
there is at least one piece of property in
each district that meets the minimum
legal requirements for an adult busi
ness,” Haymore said.
Under the city’s zoning code, adult
businesses are allowed in both light and
heavy industrialized areas and three
commercial districts. In all instances,
the adult business would have to be a
minimum of 500 feet away from a resi
dential district and 1,000 feet away from
a church, park or school.
Had Wan’s proposals been ap
proved, seven identified businesses along
Cheshire Bridge would have been forced
to vacate Cheshire Bridge Road by 2018.
Wan described his legislation as
“critical” to residential neighborhoods
around Cheshire Bridge and other busi
nesses on the street that he alleged had
been intimidated to not speak out in fa
vor of the ordinance. “There is a 14 per
cent vacancy rate along Cheshire Bridge
and declining property values,” Wan
said.
Attorney Alan Begner, who repre
sents four of the adult businesses on
Cheshire Bridge Road, said Georgia has
strong zoning laws that afford property
owners many rights.
“You know, under the law, if you put
a business out of business, if you amor
tize them out like Atlanta wanted to,
you don’t shut them down. You have to
find other locations for them to operate
at and recoup the costs of them mov
ing,” Begner said.
Councilman Howard Shook, who
represents a portion of Buckhead on the
council, said he voted against the mea
sure because it would likely result in a
lawsuit. He pointed out that the plan
was also panned by the neighborhood-
friendly zoning review
board.
“There are other meth
ods of spurring redevelop
ment in neglected com
mercial corridors that
don’t rely on legislation
that opponents can’t wait
to get into a courtroom,”
Shook said in an email. “I
look forward to support
ing a pragmatic, legally-
sound plan that reflects a
consensus among the ap
propriate property owners
and other stakeholders.”
Councilwoman Feli
cia Moore, who represents
another portion of Buck-
head, also voted against
the measure.
“As a council mem
ber who is very support
ive of community initia
tives, this vote was one of
the most difficult that I
have faced while on coun
cil. In the end, like Mr.
Wan, I had to be sup
portive of the constituents
that I represent in that at
least 80 percent of the ar
eas in which these busi
nesses could relocate were
in District 9,” Moore said.
Begner said in Atlanta’s case, the
measure appeared to be a response to a
group of residents and business owners
in the area who wanted to get rid of the
adult businesses.
“The people who wanted this to hap
pen were primarily some neighbors and
some developers, but not all,” Begner
said. “This is a common theme.”
In Brookhaven, the City Council
supported a sexually-oriented business
es ordinance that will ban nude dancing
and the sale of alcohol in the same ven
ue.
The ordinance, adopted shortly af
ter Brookhaven incorporated, prompt
ed the city’s only strip club - the Pink
Pony - to sue.
City Attorney Bill Riley declined to
comment on the litigation, as did Attor
ney Scott Bergthold, who helped draft
the ordinance.
The city released the following state
ment from the city attorney’s office:
“Cities across Georgia and the nation
have ordinances regulating the loca
tion and operation of sexually-orient
ed businesses to prevent the negative
effects associated with these types of es
tablishments, such as crime and adverse
impacts on nearby properties.
“These negative effects have been rec
ognized in numerous land use studies
and crime reports, as well as in judicial
decisions from the U.S. Supreme Court,
federal appeals court and the Georgia
Supreme Court.”
The city’s statement went on to say
that Brookhaven’s ordinance was mod
eled after those that have already been
upheld in court, and are similar to laws
on the books in DeKalb and Fulton
counties, Sandy Springs, Johns Creek
and Doraville.
“The residents and businesses of
Brookhaven should have the same pro
tections as those pro
vided in surround
ing communities,”
the statement said.
“Brookhaven will
defend its ordinanc
es, which are de
signed to protect
public safety, health
and welfare, and
further the city’s
goal of ensuring
that Brookhaven is
an excellent com
munity in which to
live.”
Begner, who
also represents the owners of the Pink
Pony, said he doesn’t understand why
Brookhaven decided to prioritize new
regulations for strip clubs so soon after
the city’s incorporation. The Pink Pony,
he said, is in a commercial area at the
southern tip of the
city and away from
sensitive uses like
schools or churches.
Begner said in
Brookhaven’s case,
there doesn’t appear
to be any outcry
from citizens about
the Pink Pony.
“The ‘why’ is
most peculiar in
Brookhaven and
Doraville,” Begner
said. “It’s one thing
to open a club near
a church and anger
residents. It’s another to put a club out
of business and not pay them for it when
almost no one cares.”
“Honey, they’re having
fun over there!”
Don’t be shy. See for yourself.
Come on over. Take a look around. Make yourself
comfortable. Meet some residents. Join a conversation.
Have some lunch (our treat, of course). What you’ll find is
that The Renaissance on Peachtree is fun and energized.
Or is it energized and fun? Whatever the case may be,
it certainly isn’t ordinary. So, don’t be shy, call (404) 237-2323
now to schedule your tour. Next thing you know, you’ll
be saying, “Honey, we should’ve moved in years ago!”
•ARJNAISSANCE
™ O N PEACHTREE
3755 Peachtree Road NE | Atlanta
404.237.2323 | renaissanceonpeachtree.com
RETIRE IN STYLE. YOUR STYLE.
(C A LEISURE CARE PREMIER COMMUNITY t=T
www.ReporterNewspapers.netl JUNE 14 —JUNE27, 2013 | 11
Pink Pony attorney Aubrey
Villines offers Brookhaven City
Council a check for $25,000,
the quarterly licensing fee the
club now pays DeKalb County.
