Seven Seas nude lounge shut down today in Tampa

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samsung1
Ohio
TAMPA - Seven Seas, a Kennedy Boulevard nude-dancing lounge that survived adult-entertainment ordinances, police raids and neighborhood protests, was shuttered today, unable to stay afloat in a stormy economy.

The owner of the property, John Few, with a writ of possession in hand, arrived at the 3023 W. Kennedy Blvd. nightspot shortly after 10 a.m., accompanied by a Hillsborough County Sheriff's deputy and a locksmith.

"Basically, he quit paying me, so I'm evicting him," Few said of tenant Larry Wolfe, proprietor of the longstanding adult business. "He hasn't paid me since January."

A Tampa Tribune reporter's attempts to reach Wolfe for comment had not been successful.

At 10:15 a.m. today, soon after Few arrived at his property, a sheriff's deputy posted an eviction notice on the front door and a locksmith went to work changing the door locks.

"It's hard to evict a tenant," Few said. "Our first attempt was in 1999. It's been a long arduous process."

There was no doubt in Few's mind about the initial order of business after taking possession of the 57-year-old building.

"The first thing I'm going to do is paint the naked lady off the wall," he said, a reference to a bigger-than-life sketch on the building's exterior wall. "I know the community will be interested to see the naked lady is down."

The property has been in Few's family since his grandparents bought it in 1947. At the time, the primary tenant was a whiskey bar called the Seven Seas, he said.

Tampa adult-entertainment magnate Joe Redner bought the lease in the early 1970s, "And it became a strip joint," Few said.

During the 1970s and 1980s, Seven Seas was among nine nude-dancing lounges targeted by Tampa City Council efforts to close, or at least hamstring, such establishments.

"They were unsuccessful in shutting them down, especially the ones that had been there a while," Few said.
May 7, 2010.
http://southtampa2.tbo.com/content/2010/…

5 comments

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avatar for wallanon
wallanon
15 years ago
Didn't even know it was still there.
avatar for LoneLurker
LoneLurker
15 years ago
Had some great times there in the mid 90's. Had really gone downhill in recent years.
avatar for potheadpl
potheadpl
15 years ago
There's a reason they called it the Seven Sleaze. Tampa's a very competitive market for SCs. Come on, you have to compete against a BUNCH of high end places(Mons, 2001, Skin, Penthouse, Dollhouse, Gold Club) and some places which are guaranteed extras(Scarlett's).
avatar for poleshadow
poleshadow
15 years ago
On the one hand, it's par for the business course that he would have let his rent slide five months. On the other, that's embarrassing. It makes a statement along the lines of "I haven't even been able to skim enough of my girls' take in VIP to keep the lights on".
avatar for arbeeguy
arbeeguy
15 years ago
Seven Slease was fascinating but disgusting. I had some amusing experiences in there. All in all, I would say Tampa and us TUSCLers are better off without it. (If it ain't there it can't disappoint.)
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