With the pressure of a pending civil rights lawsuit hovering, the Central City Council on Tuesday voted unanimously to keep strip clubs out of its historic downtown. The vote was 4-0 to move sexually oriented businesses to the industrial zone outside of the city.

“None of this has been easy or comfortable,” said Mayor Jeremy Fey, who voted for the first time on the issue after recusing himself in earlier voting. For weeks, he has taken himself out of voting on anything related to RCI Hospitality Holdings Inc, the company which is building the adult entertainment venue, because citizens believe he has gotten too close to its owner. 

Tuesday’s vote was a first reading with the option of adding amendments on future readings. Officials met in executive session with the city attorney and the Colorado Intergovernmental Risk Sharing Agency to discuss insurance coverage legal issues related to the civil complaint. 

The Council’s decision was an approval of an earlier recommendation from the Central City Planning Commission. The option to take the issue of whether to bring a strip club to historic downtown to voters in November is also still on the table, but city leaders are unsure of how a ballot issue should be worded.

At times, the complex issue seemed even to befuddle council members leading resident and council member candidate Zane Plsek to utter that “tonight was a what the heck just happened night.”

Lawsuit

RCI filed a federal lawsuit against the mountain gambling municipality, claiming its civil rights were violated when town leaders denied its request to open a Rick’s Cabaret and Steakhouse on historic Main Street. That denial happened two weeks ago. 

The lawsuit hit the courts within 24 hours of that denial. It alleges that Central City violated RCI’s civil rights when it sold a large building at 130 Main Street in historic downtown “for a specific stated economic purpose and then abandoning the process of reforming its regulatory regime to accommodate that stated purpose.” 

RCI — owners of five adult nightclubs in Denver including Rick’s Cabaret and The Diamond Cabaret —  had banked on the idea that the town would amend the municipal code that requires a 1,000 foot buffer around sexually oriented businesses (SOB) in the historic downtown from residences or gathering places, such as churches. Councilmembers declined to amend that zone to 150 feet, which would have allowed RCI to operate legally.

The lawsuit contends that Central City violated RCI’s civil rights when it sold the Main Street building, the former Scarlet’s Casino, for $2.4 million in December 2022 “for a specific stated economic purpose and then abandoning the process of reforming its regulatory regime to accommodate that stated purpose.” 

Three months earlier, on Sept. 7, 2022, Central City’s Planning Commission recommended 4-1 to the Central City Council to reduce the 1,000 foot buffer to 150 feet, clearing the way for RCI to operate an SOB.

But Central City Council never moved forward.

The recommendation sat for two years and until earlier this summer, when RCI decided to pull its gambling permit application. Without the revenue that a casino could bring in, RCI again turned to making Rick’s a sexually oriented business. 

Hopeful October open date 

RCI President and CEO Eric Langan said previously that though storms delayed construction work on the Rick’s Cabaret building, his target opening date is October. He told The Denver Gazette in earlier interviews that no matter what the City Council decided, there will be dancing at Rick’s — but not in the nude.

“We’ll cover the girls up on top with latex,” which he said looks nude but technically can be construed as clothing. 

In a text late Tuesday, he said the council’s vote will have “zero affect” on his intention to open the strip club’s downtown location.

“When our sale was made, we were in the proper district,” he said, adding that the vote will mean he can’t open a strip club downtown in the future.

Residents who spoke during public comment were concerned about putting the strip club issue to a public vote.

“Folks who have followed this saga for the last 2 1/2 years would understand a simple question on the ballot,” one woman said, worried that people who haven’t followed the issue would not be informed enough to cast an educated vote. “Don’t keep dragging this out,” she said.