OLCC: No reason to deny Stars in Tualatin

Dance club owners say they will implement a ‘Good Neighbor Plan’ to help assuage public concern

By David Holley

The Times, Apr 1, 2009, Updated Oct 30, 2009 (6 Reader comments)

Oregon Liquor Control Commission staffers say they can’t find a reason to deny a liquor license for the new Stars Cabaret strip club at 17939 S.W. McEwan Road in Tualatin.

At least, they can’t find a legal reason. There’s plenty of public opposition, however, from city and state officials, Tualatin and Lake Oswego residents and local business owners.

The OLCC is scheduled to discuss the license on April 16 at its Southeast Portland office. The discussion will be based on an investigation by OLCC staff, who determined that state law does not prevent the OLCC from licensing the new Stars Cabaret at Bridgeport.

A vote to approve the license must be unanimous, because only three of the five spots on the commission are currently filled.

Both Lake Oswego and Tualatin city councils gave unfavorable recommendations to the OLCC last year, citing state laws that they believed would prevent the licensing, while also making arguments about adverse impacts they believe the strip club would have on its neighbors.

OLCC license investigator Jeannie Janes analyzed five areas of state law brought up by Tualatin officials, which they thought could prevent the commission from granting a license to Stars Cabaret. Janes examined Stars’ compliance record with the OLCC, the placement of the new club in proximity to other businesses and whether Stars officials lied on their liquor license application, among other investigations.

Janes determined that each state law does not apply to Stars, giving the commission the green light to approve the liquor license.

The results of the investigation have left Randy Kaiser, a co-owner of the Stars chain, hopeful for the OLCC’s April meeting.

“All we ever asked for was a fair hearing,” Kaiser said. “I knew we couldn’t get it from the city. At least there’s some organization that will implement some sort of rational logic.”

Based on incidents at other Stars Cabaret locations throughout the state, Janes’ investigation concluded that four restrictions should be placed on the new Stars location, if a license is granted. Those include limiting the amount of alcohol served from midnight to 2:30 a.m., a one-drink-at-a-time limit for customers, hiring security officers for weekends, and paying for occasional parking lot security patrol.

The Stars location in Bend has had the most trouble with the law, having had 22 serious incidents in nearly two years, according to Janes’ report. The other locations, in Beaverton and Salem, were much less eventful during that same period of time.

“Placing the listed restrictions on this license will help to eliminate or prevent conditions that have contributed to the problems at Stars Bend from occurring at Stars Bridgeport,” Janes wrote in the report.

Kaiser has already implemented some of those same restrictions at Stars Bend to help reduce the number of times police are called to the club.

Stars owners have already pledged to a list of policies they will implement, called their “Good Neighbor Plan,” to help assuage public concern. Among them include moving the company headquarters to the Bridgeport location, attending neighborhood association and other public meetings, not display a sign that implies nude dancing and to install 24-hour surveillance cameras.

OLCC officials expect a big crowd on April 16. The meeting will take place at 9 a.m. at 9079 S.E. McLoughlin Blvd.

Public testimony will be heard about the liquor license.

Why they don’t want Stars:

1 | 2 Next Page >>

Facebook	Digg	Del.icio.us
Newsvine	Stumbleupon	Reddit