Brothel Owner Buys Toxic Waste Disposal Firm

Strong Point Inc., an unusual company that owns a Nevada brothel and a Laguna Beach shopping center, said Thursday that it has acquired a toxic waste disposal company in Riverside County.

The acquisition of Tri Coast Engineering, following its $3.5-million purchase in July of the Lumberyard Village Shopping Center, makes Strong Point a “multifaceted” company and no longer just a brothel operator, said John D. Davis, president of the Irvine-based firm. Davis would not disclose financial details of the acquisition of Tri Coast.

Strong Point acquired Sue’s Bordello in Elko, Nev., last December for less than $1 million.

The company, which has about 300 shareholders and whose stock is traded over the counter, is believed to be the first publicly held concern to own a brothel, or “entertainment center,” as Davis calls it.

Nevada is the only state in the country with legalized prostitution.

Strong Point has also been trying for more than a year to complete the purchase of the famous Mustang Ranch bordello near Reno for $18 million. Davis would say only that the close of that deal is “pending.”

James Danner, Tri Coast’s president, said the Corona-based company should post revenue of $4 million to $5 million in 1986.

Davis said that Strong Point bought Lumberyard Village, located near the main beach area of Laguna Beach, as part of a diversification drive. The company established a subsidiary, Lumberyard Development Co., to manage the property, which houses about 40 stores and restaurants.

Strong Point was formed in Utah in 1984 as a real estate investment company and went public the same year. Davis and a partner acquired control of the company last year, shortly before purchasing Sue’s Bordello.