While the mere mention of the adult entertainment business often conjures up images of scantily-clad performers engaged in risqué poses and B-movie stripteases, the industry is still a legitimate business.
The back room of Dockside Dolls, located at 2210 E. Dublin-Granville Road, more resembles a restaurant office than the seedy headquarters of the mob front Bada Bing! that most of the “Sopranos”-watching public would associate with a gentlemen’s club.
And for those working in the industry – a generous number, including managers, waitresses and dancers, many of whom are college students – the clubs offer reliable work that never fails to bring in sizeable income.
But even as a staple in the entertainment and business worlds, the clubs are no strangers to adversity.
“Basically, we knew coming into the business that we’d face some trouble,” said John Basinger, director of operations at Dockside Dolls, an outfit which features 10 clubs nationwide. “We’ve had no complaints from the community that I’ve heard of, and we try to run a clean operation.”
Basinger did admit Columbus is not a friendly venue for adult entertainment businesses, explaining that after pledging $10,000 to the city’s Children’s Miracle Network, his establishment’s donation was refused, and the charity group proceeded to threaten radio stations and other media outlets into cutting Dockside Dolls’ commercials. Another adult business Basinger oversees in North Carolina has donated over $40,000 to its area Children’s Miracle Network.
“I have never in my life encountered things like I have in Columbus, Ohio,” Basinger said. “We’ve had a lot of bad luck since we’ve been in this city.”
Dockside Dolls, a gentlemen’s club which will celebrate its two-year anniversary in August, goes to great lengths to avoid problems and protect its fragile business image, Basinger said.
Dockside Dolls features metal detectors at the entrance, swipes the IDs of all patrons, frequently runs drug-sniffing dogs through the building and has a Breathalyzer on hand to ensure that none of their underage workers have been drinking on the job.
However, because the club is placed amid a flurry of traffic in a commercial and residential area, Columbus City Council and local community groups have targeted the club.
Adversaries of the clubs argue area gentlemen’s clubs generate violence and influence children when the patrons spill out into the parking lots after hours, disrupting neighborhoods.
“We’re concerned about the clientele that goes to the strip clubs,” said Tom Rathbun, a member of the Franklinton neighborhood commission and chairman of the zoning committee. “Bullets don’t stop on the edge of their property; they keep going.”
Rathbun alleged illegal activities such as prostitution and drug use are often present at the clubs. He also cited the shooting that took place outside of Dockside Dolls on January 19, 2002. The incident resulted in the slaying of Ohio State student Jason A. Gervais as evidence of violence.
Under a new law passed by city council last month, additional businesses will be barred from opening clubs in areas like the one inhabited by Dockside Dolls. Existing clubs will not be affected by the legislation unless they violate city codes.
New adult entertainment businesses are restricted to manufacturing zones, where they must be at least 250 feet away from any residences, schools or university facilities, day cares, preschools, churches or other adult businesses.
“We’re trying to do what we can do within the law. These businesses are not a good influence on any neighborhood,” said Bobbi Rathbun, coordinator of the Franklinton neighborhood watch. “I know the city council is doing what they can do. It’s the owners of the businesses we have to watch.”
Mimicking the fears of concerned community members, Rathbun expressed her worries that strip club owners will try to stretch the law to its limit.
“How do we clean up when these places are going in?” Rathbun said. “I don’t care what kind of ‘gentlemen’s club’ it is, there are always problems.”
However, he expressed his relief that any new clubs will be located in manufacturing zones where they’re surrounded by industry, void of commercial areas.
“They’re out of sight, out of mind and not bothering anyone,” Rathbun said.
He still worries the new zoning ordinances could be detrimental to his neighborhood, where manufacturing creates jobs for many community members. He fears people may not want to move to an area inundated with adult-oriented businesses.
While no new adult entertainment businesses have been established in the Franklinton area, a strip club called “Sinsations” is rumored to be entering the region.
Other local community groups are continuing the fight to preserve their neighborhoods, complaining that too many clubs have been granted residence in the past.
“The north end of town is glutted with adult entertainment. We have an area where there are nine strip clubs in a small, residential neighborhood,” said George Schmidt, president of the Northland Community Council.
In the past, Schmidt said residents of Worthington picketed area strip clubs to get them closed, taking pictures of patrons entering the establishments and then posting them on a Web site to embarrass customers and thwart them from frequenting the clubs.
But contrary to public disdain, gentlemen’s clubs are legitimate businesses – establishments that generate plenty of capital and provide many jobs.
“The new zoning law is more lenient than the one that already existed, so I don’t see anything wrong with the changes,” said Basinger, who has been in the adult entertainment business for 26 years.
“Anyone who wants to open a club can do it. I don’t really see that much difference from the zoning laws in other cities,” he said.
While many area strip clubs fear that tighter restrictions could put them at risk of being shut down, they hope that community members and law enforcement officials will treat their establishments like other law-abiding businesses.
“If we start getting trouble from the law, it would put a lot of people out of work. We have a lot of students working here, including Ohio State students,” Basinger said.
