PRESS ROOM
Forest Park approves second strip club
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 02/04/08Forest Park's second strip club could open as early as next week.
The City Council voted 3 to 1 Monday night to issue Jack Galardi liquor and adult entertainment licenses for the Pink Pony South.
"They have a right to be here. They met the qualifications," Mayor Corine Deyton said Monday. "I don't anticipate any problems."
The council also voted 3-1 to renew liquor and adult entertainment licenses to Crazy Horse Saloon, another strip club owned by Galardi.
Councilwomen Maudie McCord voted against both liquor licenses, while Councilwoman Sparkle Adams voted against both adult entertainment licenses.
Councilwoman Debbie Youmans, who said she danced at the Pink Pony in Atlanta in the 1990s, was not present.
But unlike Crazy Horse's 1993 opening, Pink Pony South had no opposition Monday night.
The council's 1993 approval of Crazy Horse led residents to picket outside city hall and vote out the mayor and all seven members of the council.
That wasn't the case Monday. The only people to speak publicly about the strip clubs were Galardi's two attorneys.
"With how escalated the rhetoric had come, I expected to see them here in force," said Suzanne Coe, Galardi's attorney. "They apparently decided not to show up."
The council's approval Monday follows an extensive investigation by Forest Park Police. Part of that investigation included looking into a lawsuit that alleges a history of criminal activity at Galardi's other clubs.
In November, Crazy Horse landlord, The A Group, filed suit in Clayton County Superior Court, alleging Galardi owes $500,000 in back rent. The suit also outlined a series of criminal charges against employees of Galardi's other clubs in an attempt to halt the Pink Pony opening.
Galardi's attorneys said they are current on rent and denied the other allegations.
"Our investigation found no problem," Forest Park City Manager John Parker said Monday. "The issues that had been raised were satisfied by the investigation.
The council's approval also allows the city to avoid a pending $63 million lawsuit filed by Galardi.
"We didn't have the money to fight that (Crazy Horse) back then and we still don't," Deyton said.
Pink Pony South will be the latest in a string of Metro Atlanta clubs owned by Galardi.
Pink Pony South, an 18,000-square-foot nude club, has sat empty on Frontage Road off I-75 for the past three months while club owners have waited for licenses.
Managers say it can be ready to open in about a week. They need to stock the bar, train the staff and wait for dancers to receive their licenses.
"Because of the delay, we have to rehire some. But we got a good start," Pink Pony South manager Andrew Cargill said after the meeting.
Cargill was joined by about a dozen Galardi staff members who filled City Hall Monday night. Some wore hot pink "Yes 4 Jobs" sticker.
Pink Pony South is expected to bring about 150 jobs to Clayton County's largest city.
