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Local Restaurant Going Topless?

sinclair

Strip Club Nation

MEMPHIS, Tenn. - It's an idea many feared and one that has many outraged. After years of being in business, a Cordova restaurant owner may be trying to transform his eatery into a strip joint.

In Brief:

Stella Marris, a local night club and restaurant, is closed for renovations.

Owner recently filed for ‘compensated dance permit'-typically used for strip clubs.

Stella Marris is located across from a youth baseball field.


The restaurant Stella Marris has been closed for months. The website said it's because of new renovations leaving many to believe the business owner, Steve Cooper, has been prepping the place for lap dances when it reopens.

What is Stella Marris?

Upscale dining is how Cordova restaurant Stella Marris has marketed itself since it opened back in 2009. This after many believed the owner, Steve Cooper, had plans to one day turn it into a strip club.

When the restaurant opened in 2009, Shelby County Commissioner Steve Mulroy was among county officials who feared this would happen. A year later, the county passed a zoning ordinance, banning such businesses from operating within 1500 feet of family recreation centers.

The business sits right across the street from a youth baseball field. Parents say the potential of it opening as a topless bar, is something they're not happy about.

Why People are So Angry

Those speculations have become a reality. Cooper recently filed for a compensated dance permit. The same permit used to operate strip joints.

"The owner represented that they weren't doing a strip club, they were doing a restaurant and this kind of bait and switch is not something we need to tolerate," said Commissioner Mulroy. "Even if strip clubs have a right to exist they shouldn't be located near homes, churches, schools or playgrounds."

"You know this was here before the restaurant was there so apparently he doesn't care about the kids or what the people think," said one parent referring to the youth baseball field.

But the county said with the current zoning, granting the permit is not likely.

“I'm aware of no change in the applicable law or any material facts between then and now," said Mulroy.

Stella Marris on Renovations

A press release posted on the restaurant's Facebook page said the place is closed for renovations which include unnamed “operational refinements”. They add the business will reopen under a different name and will still offer fine dining throughout the week but it doesn't say anything about what'll be offered on the weekends.

Stella Marris' website said it'll reopen in late September, early October.



http://www.myfoxmemphis.com/dpp/news/loc…