Nicollet Council

walks through

amortization process

City administrator

will inspect strip

club Wednesday morning

By FRITZ BUSCH

Journal Staff Writer

NICOLLET -- Nicollet City Administrator Dan Wietecha walked the Nicollet City Council through its amortization process Wednesday against a strip club that sprang up in a former boat factory last fall.

The council unanimously approved a resolution authorizing Wietecha to inspect the strip club at 12:01 a.m. Wednesday, July 24, to see if it is in compliance with Adult Use Ordinances approved earlier this year.

If the local, alcohol-free, totally nude strip club remains in business on July 24, it would violate a city ordinance requiring adult cabarets to be 500 feet from any residential property.

The strip club was originally known as The Mirage. It is now doing business as part of the Pure Gold franchise and is currently located across the street from residential property.

If the strip club remains in non-compliance with Nicollet adult use ordinances, Wietecha will notarize affidavits early Wednesday morning and deliver them to the Nicollet County Courthouse in St. Peter in order to get a temporary restraining order to close the strip club.

The next step in the process would be a temporary injunction followed by an injunction in which the court would verify that Nicollet's adult use ordinances were valid, enforceable and must be abided by.

After discussing possible ramifications of the amortization process, Wietecha told the council he was "99.9 percent sure" that a temporary restraining order, temporary injunction and injunction would be upheld in court.

"We've got an awful lot in our favor," Wietecha said. "We discussed lots of legal procedures when we crafted these ordinances. Let's hope for the best, that they're (Pure Gold) is in compliance Wednesday."

Councilor Fred Froehlich voiced approval of the measures.

"We've spent 10 months of this. It's time to move," Froehlich said.

Last fall, the council heard vehement public complaints about noise, trash and public urination in the yards of residences near the strip club in the wee hours of the morning.

Led by Wietecha, the Council began in extensive study of strip club litigation cases across the country, consulted a St. Peter attorney and created a number of ordinances to deal with related issues including a 90-day amortization process that ends at midnight, Tuesday, July 23.

Wietecha said he had difficulty getting raw data on how much money was invested in the strip club since it opened. According to a copy of the building lease he received, Wietecha said about $25,000 was invested in the business.

"I hope they're making Christmas wreaths when I walk in there Wednesday morning, Wietecha said. "Nothing is grandfathered in the amortization."

In other action, the council approved:

* The resignation of councilor Kurt Zins since he will be moving out of the city limits.

* Paying the first $2.16 million Highway 99 Improvement Project payment of $95,513.74.

* Decertifying Lot 8, Block 1 of the Mara Tonka Addition from Tax Increment Financing District No. 1-7 and returning it to the general tax rolls.

* Supporting Nicollet County's soliciting funds for the Historic Fort Road, Nicollet County Highway 5. After completing 12 miles of reconstruction, county highway funding would be diverted to preservation of other failing pavements, leaving 23 miles waiting for needed reconstruction funding.

Nicollet County asked the Minnesota Congressional Delegation in Washington, D.C. to participate by specifically designating federal highway funds to complete the remaining construction of the deteriorated Historic Fort Road at a cost of $12 million.