Article in Southern Voice today:
The owners of Spring4th — which has hosted gay leather parties and events produced by Atlanta’s queer Femme Mafia — encountered the parking requirements when the venue expanded in summer 2006, with the number of required parking spaces tied to a location’s size. The expansion also attracted the attention of various neighborhood groups, who attempted to close down the venue.
Before going to the official city committee, the Spring4th parking and liquor license applications were required to wind through groups like the Midtown Neighbors’ Association and the area Neighborhood Planning Unit. An MNA committee originally indicated it would not oppose Spring4th’s applications, but MNA members began making allegations about illegal activities taking place at Spring4th, according to owner Rick Day.
The accusations ranged from charges that the expansion included construction work without a permit, to an anonymous e-mail that alleged Spring4th was secretly a sex club. Midtown neighbors also allegedly doctored an advertisement for an event at Spring4th so that it advertised “BYOB — All ages” and “Underage girls welcome,” according to before-and-after images posted on Spring4th’s website.
In April 2007, the MNA board voted to oppose Spring4th’s liquor license application and parking waiver.
According to the minutes from the MNA’s April 26 meeting, a board member allegedly received an e-mail that stated, “If you want to know what goes on in the building with the red door — sex.”
The MNA board rejected the Spring4th applications, “as it is not appropriate for the neighborhood,” according to the meeting minutes.
Read the whole thing, and leave a comment or write a letter!
