P&Z says NO to adult zones as the TC reviews new adult rules.
The P&Z commission has finally made their decision on the proposed new B-3A and I-3A zones which would have allowed up to 6 new adult establishments to come to town.
According to the Hartford Courant:
Saying they felt obligated to listen to the voices of the people, members of the planning and zoning commission voted 4-3 Wednesday night to shoot down proposed new regulations that would have allowed strip clubs to operate in two largely residential neighborhoods.
Commission members decided to maintain the town’s current regulations, which allow for such establishments in various industrial pockets throughout town. The vote was met with applause from several residents in the audience at town hall, including a group of residents who live in one of the neighborhoods where the new rules would have allowed adult-entertainment establishments.
As expected Kim Coleman, legal counsel for Mark Chu and Masters Club LLC, intends to refile a lawsuit challenging the existing regulations according to the Courant.
The town council through the ordinance committee is simultaneously working to reform the adult establishment regulations. The committee met on the 19th to review draft ordinances governing adult establishments. Among these according to the meeting minutes are licensing of employees which would involve a criminal background check, fingerprinting and recording of social security and drivers license information. Also the club would have to maintain a monthly list of employees and information on management. I expect that such a list, being submitted to the town, would be public information meaning anybody could see just who in a given month is working at an adult establishment.
I guess that means no more stripping your way through college on the sly.
Strip Club Location Poll
As I was checking out the East Hartford Gazette online this morning I notice the poll had changed.
The results of this new poll so far have been quite interesting.
Government on Demand – April 30th P&Z Public Hearing
In an attempt to improve the viewing experience (at the expense of post length) I have broken up the video into many individual segments. Any segment can be downloaded by clicking on the video to go to google video and clicking the download video for Ipod link on the right.
Now for the video…
Feel free to comment if I didn’t get a name right or I have no name for you.
Start of the public hearing
[googlevideo=http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=8783132151741655230&hl=en]
Mike Dayton’s Testimony
[googlevideo=http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=5481561988366872831&hl=en]
Hugo Benettieri’s Testimony
[googlevideo=http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=7168885925202950493&hl=en]
Phil Michalowski’s Testimony
[googlevideo=http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=1116742656490555714&hl=en]
Mike Dayton’s Testimony 2
[googlevideo=http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-3104869214782383952&hl=en]
Public Testimony
Patrick Sanzo
[googlevideo=http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-7410122125864069805&hl=en]
Reginald (?)
[googlevideo=http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=204646853598248022&hl=en]
Catherine Stevens
[googlevideo=http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=6230271538889375564&hl=en]
Barbara Austin
[googlevideo=http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-777909045368453571&hl=en]
Susan Kniep
[googlevideo=http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-4826426773938044965&hl=en]
Michael Sylvestor
[googlevideo=http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=3241042285851883611&hl=en]
Susan Kniep 2
[googlevideo=http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-3377900106958277293&hl=en]
Irene (?)
[googlevideo=http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-4295272501323942452&hl=en]
George Franek
[googlevideo=http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=5534731641515391930&hl=en]
Peter Santoro
[googlevideo=http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-6441809549551636232&hl=en]
Jonathan Keller
[googlevideo=http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-1147219206541810618&hl=en]
Mike DeGregario
[googlevideo=http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=4368769788736833410&hl=en]
Kim Coleman
[googlevideo=http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-8158289272832326139&hl=en]
Kathy Lombardo
[googlevideo=http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=8506726968021155175&hl=en]
Janet Rice
[googlevideo=http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=591673795680000163&hl=en]
Greg Foran
[googlevideo=http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-3174224560640911351&hl=en]
Unknown
[googlevideo=http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=4068385231981160109&hl=en]
Karen Howe
[googlevideo=http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-7901084634896906148&hl=en]
Unknown
[googlevideo=http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=2372174106279897271&hl=en]
Michael Sylvestor Jr.
[googlevideo=http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-1418919514888430617&hl=en]
Steve Livingston
[googlevideo=http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-5908961909187717257&hl=en]
Salvatore Ingallinero
[googlevideo=http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=9070715958164534125&hl=en]
Clara Pierceton
[googlevideo=http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-7953983522359120584&hl=en]
Unknown
[googlevideo=http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=3752488304026996785&hl=en]
Anita Morrison
[googlevideo=http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-5793757251265910872&hl=en]
Peter Santoro 2
[googlevideo=http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-8863953660385219123&hl=en]
Greg Foran 2
[googlevideo=http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=8737490786104865995&hl=en]
Susan Kniep 3
[googlevideo=http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-3433246283750096253&hl=en]
Patrick Sanzo 2
[googlevideo=http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=1293747739701479833&hl=en]
Don Pitkin
[googlevideo=http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=4017878779288567697&hl=en]
Kim Coleman 2
[googlevideo=http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-8728496470612585029&hl=en]
Reginald ? 2
[googlevideo=http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-8122080886508593396&hl=en]
Marc Weinberg
[googlevideo=http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=3570124340051417617&hl=en]
End of hearing and P&Z action
[googlevideo=http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-8906421080912648961&hl=en]
P&Z postpones action on rezone.
The public hearing is over and the P&Z has decided to postpone action on the proposed zoning changes for adult establishments until their next regular meeting at earliest to allow for further research.
Many people turned out and all told I have about 3 hours of video to sort through so more will come later.
The message was clear tonight. Not in my town. Not in my backyard. The P&Z will continue investigating alternatives but it looks like it will be our town and our back yards.
Reminder! Strip club hearing is tonight!
Agenda is HERE.
If you live in North Meadows or the Prestige Park area you need to be there.
The topic of discussion will be the zoning changes to allow strip clubs in the North Meadows and Prestige Park sections of town.
Masters Club Update
I received an update email from Kim Coleman who is the legal counsel for Masters Club LLC.
Hi Jon-
Just a quick update as to what has occurred in the lawsuit.
The Town of East Hartford is again amending their zoning regulations. They are changing several zones. A portion of North Meadows (including water) is being converted from B-3 to B-3A. A portion of Prestige Park is being converted from I-3 to I-3A. Both will allow adult entertainment establishments.
On April 23, 2008 there is a joint meeting between the Town Council & P&Z.
The P&Z meeting to adopt the zone changes is on April 30, 2008.
We came to a temporary resolution with the town recently. The paid for my client’s attorney fees and we agreed to no press forward on the suit until after the zoning changes are in effect.
Our concerns regarding these changes are that they are still in residential areas and no parking is required; what will the impact be on traffic in these residential areas; lack of notice to the residents and business owners in the areas.
Kim Coleman
Law Offices of Norman A. Pattis, LLC
I had a feeling this was the case when I saw that the council voted to pay the attorney fees. I take it this means the town has finally come to terms that a new strip club is coming to town (potentially more than one) and and has decided to move towards managing it rather than preventing it.
Does Kim Coleman have a point on club location?
Kim’s interview got me thinking a bit. I decided to make up a quick google interactive map to test Kim’s assertion that a prestige park site would likely generate considerably more residential secondary effects than a Roberts street location. I know she showed a map as large as a whale at the P&Z but unfortunately I didn’t get a clear look at it.
Red lines mark the likely routes out of towners would take to a prestige park club. Yellow marks the route to a Roberts street club. Both club sites are marked blue with a 2000FT cyan radius to let you easily see residential neighborhoods that are well within “secondary effects” range.
Based on this map if I had to choose between the I-2 zoned Roberts street location and the I-3 zoned prestige park location I’d want it in the I-2 Roberts street location. How about you?
As promised. Your government on demand.
As promised I have finally uploaded the full P&Z special hearing for your review.
Here’s a quick and dirty break down of what can be found where:
00:00:00-00:00:54 Pre-Meeting
00:00:55-00:05:50 Agenda, Procedure
00:05:50-00:31:20 Presentation of information on secondary
effects of Adult Establishments.
00:31:20-00:46:04 Questions from members of the commission
regarding the information previously presented.
00:46:04-00:59:11 Public comment in favor of one or both
amendments. Comment by Councilman Eric Thompson,
Mary Alice Dwyer Hughes, Reginald Diebold?
(Correction Needed), Patrick Sanzo, and Jon Searles.
00:59:11-01:12:00 Public comment against one or more
amendments. Comment by Kim Coleman council for Masters
Club LLC.
01:12:00-01:15:30 Commission vote on amendment #1.
(Moratorium)
01:15:30-01:18:20 Commission vote on amendment #2.
(Removal of requirements)
01:18:20-01:20:10 Commission vote on bond reduction item.
01:20:10-01:31:00 Mini press conference with Masters Club
LLC legal counsel. Questions by Ben Rubin of the Journal Inquirer.
(Video is not edited. Questions were started before I left the chamber.)
Just for the record, the left side council chamber speaker was not functioning this evening which caused the poor sound.
[googlevideo=http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=3226007533253161776]
Masters Club speaks out. Is it time to listen?
Attorney Kim Coleman gave me an exclusive 20 minute interview to explain the situation relating to Masters Club to the residents of East Hartford.
As she said during the P&Z meeting many people are worried about a long expensive legal battle that EH will ultimately lose. It looks like those people may be justified.
The full video is below, but here is a summary of the points made:
1.) There will be clubs somewhere because the constitutions says so.
2.) The Roberts Street location has the least impact on residential areas of all the available sites.
3.) The P&Z actions may be a 2nd violation of the constitution.
4.) Masters Club is willing to share plans with the public to ensure the design is tasteful.
[googlevideo=http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-1203510291079085686]
Now is the time for questions – P&Z Commission Special Public Hearing
The East Hartford planning & zoning Commission has a special hearing scheduled for Wednesday the 23rd. This is the chance for residents to figure out what the heck is going on with the new strip clubs coming to town. Hopefully there will be a video follow up on this hearing later this week.
There has been much discussion regarding whether or not East Hartford wants or needs a new (or two) strip club. While most wouldn’t have a strip club as their primary choice I think I’d rather have a strip club than an empty, tax delinquent and unsafe building. We need to open our eyes and realize that we have a larger problem than strip clubs in East Hartford and that’s why only strip clubs are fighting to come in.
http://www.ci.east-hartford.ct.us/…/012A1E72-000F8513
Town Council Chambers
Begins: 7:30 p.m.
SPECIAL PUBLIC HEARING AGENDA
PLANNING AND ZONING COMMISSION
JANUARY 23, 2008
1. CALL TO ORDER
2. APPLICATION FOR TEXT AMENDMENT: To Industrial III (I-3) Zone Section 503.3 Special Permit Uses Adult Oriented Establishments for the purposes of a moratorium on new Adult Oriented Establishments not to exceed eight (8) months.
Applicant: Town of East Hartford Planning and Zoning Commission
3. APPLICATION FOR TEXT AMENDMENT To Industrial III (I-3) Zone Section 503.3 Special Permit Uses Adult Oriented Establishments to provide new preamble and severability sections, and elimination of certain requirements within Section 503.3.
Applicant: Town of East Hartford Planning and Zoning Commission
4. ADJOURNMENT
