RAYNHAM, MA – Under most circumstances, cities and towns throughout the country are thrilled to have a thriving local business drawing in tourist’s dollars hand over fist.When a local business derives its revenue from selling pornography and has developed a reputation as a hot spot for clandestine sexual encounters, on the other hand, local residents and officials are less likely to celebrate the presence of the establishment.
The Video X-Tra Adult Superstore on Route 44 on the outer reaches of Raynham, MA is one such business, drawing patrons from all over the New England region, according to reports in the Brockton, MA-based newspaper The Enterprise.
In an article published this week, the newspaper reports that officers on patrol in the area regularly “see cars from as far away as New Hampshire and Rhode Island” in the parking lot of Video X-Tra, and adds that a truck with New Jersey plates was seen at the store recently.
The out-of-state attention being paid to Video X-tra extends to the internet, as well; the Enterprise reports that a website used by gay men to “arrange a rendezvous” at the store was “littered” with messages after the newspaper published an article in December revealing the store as a “notorious gay hangout.”
In an ironic twist on the tale, the Enterprise – which is at least partially responsible for the hubbub surrounding Video X-Tra – now asks whether the presence of the store might be having an adverse effect on the reputation of Raynham, itself.
Despite the newspaper’s concern, it seems that the answer, thus far at least, is “no.”
“We have still had no complaints from anyone,” said Raynham Police Chief Louis J. Pacheco, who also confirmed that police had observed license plates from three states (New Hampshire, Massachusetts and Rhode Island) on cars in the store’s parking lot.
Pacheco conceded that the private video viewing booths are a “big draw” for men who want to meet up and have sex, but added that there’s little his department can do if no complaints are filed.
“Our officers routinely check it out, but there is nothing illegal going on,” said Pacheco, adding that the “people who go there want to go there. They pay their money for the private booths. It is no different from renting a room at a hotel.”
Jean Scarborough, the president of the Cranberry Country Chamber of Commerce, told the Enterprise that she hadn’t seen any evidence that the presence of Video X-Tra has damaged Raynham’s standing with businesses, either.
“I haven’t heard anything from the business community about any concerns so I don’t think the town’s reputation has been affected,” Scarborough said.
After Selectman Donald McKinnon received a letter of complaint about Video X-tra, he spoke to officials in Northampton, MA, where an activist group called No Porn Northampton had forced an adult business to withdraw a proposal to install 20 private viewing booths in a similar store there, citing public health concerns.
McKinnon said that Alan Perry from the Raynham Board of Health told him that Video X-tra does not appear to have violated any relevant health and safety regulations.
“I’m not pleased about the situation myself but we did zone it so it would be isolated,” said McKinnon, according to the Enterprise.
“Considering what they do, we have had no problems,” added McKinnon. “The internet has helped spread the word about it, so I’m not surprised that people are coming from New Hampshire. People all over the world probably know about it.”
Asked by the Enterprise what they thought about Video X-tra’s impact on Raynhan’s reputation, residents of the town expressed similar doubt the store is having a significant impact.
“Most people that I have talked to don’t pay any attention to the store,” commented Raynham resident Richard Poole, adding that one reason the store doesn’t trouble him is that Video X-tra is isolated on the outskirts, and there’s “nothing much out there.”
Caitlin Plasse, a 20-year-old who works at a hair salon in Raynham said that while she was “shocked that people are traveling from all over” to frequent the adult shop, “it doesn’t bother me at all that the store is there.”
Another young local hairstylist, Ashley Brennan, said that while she thinks it is “indecent” and “wrong that people are going to a public store to do this,” she said that none of her customers at the salon have ever mentioned Video X-tra.
One resident who declined to identify himself did have a complaint about Video X-tra, however; he told the Enterprise that the local gay community is angry at the store for giving gay men a bad name.
For the time being, it seems unlikely that Video X-tra will face a crackdown by local authorities – every official that answered questions on-the-record for the latest Enterprise article indicated that there is nothing they can do about the store and that Video X-tra appears to be complying with relevant local statutes and codes.
