MILFORD, PA — There is no joy in Milford. Coyotes Show Club has struck out.Twice.
At least that’s the word since last Friday, when a Pennsylvania county judge became the second to issue an order prohibiting adult entertainment — including stripping, erotic dancing and live sex — at the cabaret, which has only been open since December 14th.
Judge Clyde W. Waite’s ruling came in response to a lawsuit filed by town fathers. In the suit, officials alleged Coyotes violated town ordinances by allowing women to dance topless and simulate sexual intercourse with club patrons.
Although Coyotes is located within the town’s commercial district — where adult entertainment is allowed — the club reportedly never applied for a sexually oriented business license. The cabaret may be located too near a town park to qualify for a license, officials told the court. In addition, city officials claim Coyotes willfully disguised its intention to open as a cabaret by filing for a restaurant-and-bar permit only.
The city’s lawsuit was filed after a federal judge issued a similar order, with the caveat that she was unsure about whether she had jurisdiction in the matter. Judge Cynthia M. Rufe’s ruling came one week before Waite’s.
The “no adult entertainment” order is a stopgap measure, designed to put a halt to escalating tension between town officials and the club’s owners until either one of two conditions is satisfied: Coyotes obtains a license to operate in its current incarnation, or it wins a federal lawsuit against Milford in which the cabaret calls the town’s zoning ordinances unconstitutional. A hearing is scheduled for January 9th in the U.S. District Court in Philadelphia.
