SOUTH PADRE ISLAND — A South Padre Island attorney says he is suing Cameron County after facing opposition to building a topless bar on the outskirts of the Island.
Larry Polsky is proposing an 8,400-square-foot modular building, which will likely work as both his residence and the bar.
He sued the county after repeated requests for an application were ignored by the Cameron County Sheriff’s Department, he said.
“They made it impossible for me to do anything but sue them,” Polsky said.
The location Polsky has in mind is six miles away from other properties in any direction, he said.
In order for a resident of the county to open a sexually oriented business, they must get an application from the sheriff’s department. If it is turned down, they are able to go before the commissioner’s court, Sheriff Omar Lucio said.
“I’m sure the individual asking for the permit can go up there and have his say, but it is up to the court to finally approve it. In other words, we can refuse it, he can appeal it to the commissioner’s court, and that’s where we are at,” Lucio said. “Now the people can come before the court and air their concerns.”
Lucio said he received about six or seven letters from residents who were “opposed, period.” He handed them over to the legal department.
Polsky bought his property in 2009 for $500,000, he said.
There are currently two sexually oriented businesses in the county, Polsky said, referring to Jaguars and Stilettos Cabaret. Neither business is located on South Padre Island.
According to county regulations, anyone applying for a sexually oriented business permit is required to submit an estimate of the number of employees, a general description of the business’s structure, and a sketch showing the configuration of the premises.
The business must also be 1,500 feet away from any child care facility, school, dwelling, hospital, public building, public park, or place of religious worship.
Applicants are required to give written notice of a business’s sexually oriented business permit application to all owners and lessees of real property within 1,500 feet. These owners will be notified of any hearings involving the permit.
If the sheriff denies the permit, the decision can be appealed. The court must consider the appeal no later than 30 days after receiving the written request for an appeal. The court must come to a decision no later than 15 days after the hearing.
Polsky says the county is refusing the permit because they define the beach as a public park. The Cameron County Legal Department declined to comment on the pending litigation.
“If the county commission says the whole beach is a public park, then that opens up a can of worms. They will have duties if it is a public park. Let’s assume I’m correct and that it isn’t a public park. That’s costing the taxpayers a lot of money, and why would they do that?” Polsky said.
A date for the public hearing has not been set yet.
