Pradel to decide on Show-Me's liquor license in week or so

Naperville Mayor and Liquor Commissioner George Pradel said he hopes to make a decision on Show-Me's liquor license “within the next week or two.”

The 15 residents who spoke in opposition to the sports restaurant and bar, however, would have liked him to decline the application on the spot.

The residents, many of whom live in the subdivision just south of the proposed location at 1126 E. Ogden Ave., oppose the restaurant for a variety of reasons, such as the lot's access point at Burlington Avenue and increased, potentially intoxicated traffic; the scantily clad waitresses; and the often less than desirable clientele that one opponent spoke of.

At least one opponent also questioned the message that allowing Show-Me's into the city would send to the young girls of Naperville. She called the restaurant “another nail in the coffin of women.”

“Must Naperville reinforce the idea that women are nothing more than sex objects?” asked resident Jeanette Steiner. “Saying that one patronizes a restaurant such as Show-Me's for their food and drink is reminiscent of people who rationalize subscribing to Playboy magazine for its thought-provoking articles.”

Laura Rapsys, a 30-year resident, questioned whether Naperville would still be “a great place to raise (her) own family in” if Show-Me's became her neighbor.

“Our home values would drop significantly and I would fear for the safety of the homes around the establishment,” she told the commission.

John Berk, the fourth speaker of the evening and the only one to speak in favor of awarding license, said he felt both sides needed to be represented.

“This is not a strip joint. It's not a topless bar or a place where all the patrons are perverted or alcoholics or that everyone who leaves is drunk,” Berk said before comparing Show-Me's to Hooters and Tilted Kilt. “These are establishments that sometimes draw people in for the first time for curiosity. If the food's good, they go back. If the food's not any good, they don't.”

Pradel thanked the audience and noted that Thursday evening was the first liquor commission meeting in 16 years that ever drew such a crowd.

Pradel has 60 days to issue a decision on the license but said he expects to do so within the next two weeks.