NEWPORT BEACH : Topless Bar Gets Order Not to Open
An Orange County Superior Court judge granted a preliminary injunction Tuesday that prevents an adult theater and topless dance bar from opening.
Newport Beach officials requested the injunction last month after concluding that the owner of Mermaids might open the business even after the City Council rejected his application.
Judge Warren Siegal is set to decide in a few weeks whether to make his order permanent, said Robin Flory, assistant city attorney for Newport Beach.
The owner sought to open Mermaids at a site on Martingale Way near John Wayne Airport. But both the Planning Commission and City Council rejected his proposal.
Supporters of the business argued that exotic dancing is a form of free speech and that the city did not have the right to deny the permit.
The city claimed that the business is not permitted under zoning regulations.
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