Last Thursday, April 24, citizens and council memebers of Triana, Ala., sat down to discuss a proposed strip club that would be built across the street from the newly developing subdivision of Savannah Grove.
More than 150 people crowded into a small meeting room and argued not only about whether or not to approve the strip club’s application for a liquor license, but also over “whose voice counts, between so-called “Old Triana” and “New Triana.”
WHNT quoted a woman who supported herself being apart of “Old Triana”. “It appalls me that I see so many of you here today, and I don’t see you here for community clean up day or Arbor day. There is more stuff going on in Triana than just this.”
Michele Rymer, a resident of Savannah Grove, responded by saying, “I don’t think it’s fair to call out accusations against us because we don’t want a strip club, but we can’t say that because we didn’t come to trash pick up day!”
At one point during the meeting, a council member left the room in a fit of aggravation.
Although the meeting left the decision to approve the application for the liquor license unanswered, there was another meeting on Monday, April 28, to further contemplate and debate the decision.
Stacy Tanner, a resident of Triana, said, “I had a realtor call me and say they were going to come by this Saturday and look at the home with a potential buyer. And yesterday I got a call from the realtor saying the potential buyer saw on the news that we were going to be getting a strip club possibly, and that they did not have any more interest.”
Steve Haraway, Madison County commissioner who represents Triana, is looking into a state law that forbids strip clubs from operating within 1,000 feet of a private residence. The law may go into affect if the Triana’s council approves the strip club’s application.
Will council allow the club? Many residents are questioning whether the council even should allow it. Could it affect more than simply the unsettling of citizens?
