GREEN RIVER – Green River City Council heard from a disgruntled business owner Tuesday for failing to open The Mast Lounge as a strip club due to issues with the zoned district where the facility is located.
Thomas Eddy recently bought The Mast Lounge to open it up as a sexually oriented venue.
“We want to open it as a strip club. I bought it with the idea that it could be opened as a strip club, ”Eddy said.
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However, companies that are sexually oriented are considered “Non-Compliant Use” where use of The Mast has been suspended for more than 18 months due to the cessation of business.
Non-compliant use is when a property is used for a purpose that does not comply with the usage regulations for the zone area in which it is located in accordance with the city ordinance. The mast is located on Flaming Gorge Drive next to restaurants, apartment buildings, the museum and churches.
However, if the active and continuous operation of improper use ceases for a period of 18 consecutive months, the structure will lose its non-compliant use and can only be used for compliant use, explains the regulation.
Green River’s director of public works, Mark Westenskow, said the facility has been out of service for nearly three years due to a number of ownership issues with The Mast, as well as the need for building repairs.
However, Eddy argues that the reason they couldn’t be opened within 18 months was because of repairs that needed to be done on the building, such as: B. Replacing the roof and fixing a sewage problem where sewage from the store next door filled the basement of the mast. In addition, the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic also set them back.
Eddy said there is a clause in the non-compliant usage regulation that says it should allow time for any repairs that need to be done on the building.
“The right to operate and maintain a non-compliant primary structure does not expire if the structure is damaged or destroyed in any way. The repair or replacement of such damaged or destroyed structures is permitted, ”says the regulation.
Hence, Eddy said the repairs and pandemic should be considered when considering the schedule of these non-compliant uses.
Non-compliant uses are “precious rights”.
The council, Mayor Pete Rust and the city staff agreed that the 18 months had passed and the non-compliant usage had ceased.
Ken Yeager, senior building inspector, said the store has not been open since April 2018, and it has still not been open as of that date, which equates to about 34 months of inactivity.
“The reasons why this was the case and the different people involved, we understand that there are a lot of different moving parts there, but it’s clear that it has not been in service for over 18 months. In fact, it’s been almost three years, ”said Westenskow.
Mayor Rust said the non-compliant uses are pretty standard in any zoning law in the United States and that this is not specific to Green River.
“It’s a decision made by the community, certain uses that are appropriate in the zone district, and certain uses that are inappropriate,” Mayor Rust said. “When a time frame expires, you no longer have the right to do that use.”
Alderman Jim Zimmerman, who works for Sweetwater County Planning and Zoning, said non-compliant uses are “valuable.” Businesses like fireworks and strip clubs are among the non-compliant uses.
“These are a precious right and just need to be monitored and searched. Care has to be taken because if you lose them, they are gone,” said Zimmerman.
The council is unlikely to endorse a strip club
According to Westenskow, Eddy can open the business as a bar without the sexually oriented business component or apply for a special usage permit for non-compliant usage. However, that process would go through the city’s planning and zoning officer, and then the city council would have the final say.
Councilor Gary Killpack made it very clear that he would not support a strip club.
“I’m not going to support a strip club. Not in Green River City, ”Killpack said.
Mayor Rust and City Councilor George Jost agreed that the use for this zone area was not considered appropriate and therefore they would not support any special use permit.
“It is non-compliant, and through non-compliance it has been determined that it is not appropriate use in this zone and I will not change my vote regardless of which method is used,” said Mayor Rust.
Councilor Sherry Bushman and Councilor Zimmerman agreed that due to legality, they would also not support the issue. Zimmerman said if it was a new business, that non-compliant use would not be allowed in that district.
Threatened lawsuit against the city
Rock Springs resident Jack Eddy and Thomas’ father said that when he and his son viewed the building before buying it, the basement was dry. He believes the city of Green River cleaned the sewage before showing the building.
“It should never have been sold like that,” said Jack.
Jack claimed that the city has “some liability” in this matter and that they “need to see that”. He said his son would never have bought the building if there was “two feet of sewer” in the basement.
“But someone cleaned that up, and it was the town of Green River that cleaned it up,” said Jack.
Jack added that his son poured hundreds of thousands of dollars into The Mast in hopes of opening it up as a “respectable gentlemen’s club”.
Councilor Killpack responded by saying, “For me, a strip club is not a serious business.”
Thomas Eddy disagreed with Killpack, saying that strip clubs fall under arts and entertainment venues, which are the same type of event bars as they are classified.
“These girls are dancers. That goes under Art and Entertainment. It is an art and entertainment place. This is a bar. Did you know that? That’s a bar in Green River, ”said Eddy.
“You want to look down on someone and judge, that just shows that you are biased,” added Eddy.
Eddy threatened legal action against the city for denying non-compliant use.
“It’s not my point of view, it’s not what I want to do, but I will,” Eddy said.
Mayor Rust once again told Eddy that he could open a bar in the building because it was allowed in the zoning district and that the city would be happy to work with him on it, but that a strip club would not be allowed.
“You can’t have a sexually oriented business, that’s the end of the conversation tonight,” said Mayor Rust.
Before Eddy left the meeting, he asked for the town attorney’s information and asked for the minutes of the meeting to be made available to him when they were available.
The full conversation can be found on the City of Green River’s Youtube page.
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