Lake County strip club pays its fines, closes doors
One target of the years-long struggle to enforce the county's adult entertainment ordinance was eliminated Tuesday in a Lake County courtroom.
The attorney for XLP Corp., owner of the Ela Township exotic dance club Dancers, handed over a check for $135,000 to settle fines the club racked up while operating in defiance of the ordinance.
"It's over; we're done," said Michael Chrissman, an owner of the club that closed June 28 because of the violations. "The bottom line is the county just doesn't want strip clubs."
Chrissman said his group won't reopen the club at Route 12 and Lake-Cook Road, and instead plans to sell the land.
The settlement brings to an end a long history of conflict for the club dating to the 1970s. During that time, it was repeatedly the center of prostitution stings, code inspections and hostility from its neighbors.
Three other businesses also have been fined for not obtaining licenses mandated by the 2001 ordinance. It imposed strict codes for operations and provided for fines of up to $500 per day for violations.
The owners of Baby Dolls dance club and Video Magic video store in Wadsworth were each hit with $204,500 in fines last week. The county is trying to collect $855,000 in fines levied against the Route 41 News in Wadsworth last year.
All but the Route 41 News fought in court for years against the ordinance, which specified operating hours, seating and stage arrangements, and restricted customer tipping.
But the curtain came down on those legal challenges May 15, 2006, when the U.S. Supreme Court refused to entertain a claim the ordinance was unconstitutional.
Circuit Judge Margaret Mullen ordered all businesses operating without the licenses shuttered on June 28, and moved forward in assessing the fines against all the businesses that filed the legal challenges.
Lou Pissios, an attorney for Baby Dolls and Video Magic, said Tuesday he believes his clients want to pursue an appeal of the fines, but did not rule out the possibility of trying to settle with the county for less than the $409,000 Mullen ordered.
Mullen set a Nov. 30 deadline for payment of the fines in her order of last week.
Assistant State's Attorney Dan Jasica said if any appeal is filed by Baby Dolls and Video Magic, he will ask the court to order a bond equal to the amount of the fines or close to it be posted.
That will spare the county the time and expense it is investing in trying to collect the $855,000 a judge ordered the owners of Route 41 News to pay last year.
Another court date in that matter is set for Oct. 12.