TAMPA, FL — Some cities are less interested in making good fiscal decisions than others. Tampa officials, citing “the exposure of certain anatomical parts” among their reasons, last week rejected an application for rental of the city’s convention center by the Sex and So Much More adult industry conference.Instead, authorities recommended that if show organizers were determined to target their city, they display their wares in “places where adult-use zoning exists,” as City Attorney David Smith put it. An example of what the city considers to be an appropriate location for the event is the Mons Venus — a local strip club.
According to Showcase Productions show coordinator Kari Calder, while the convention — which attracts tens of thousands of attendees — includes lingerie shows, male dancers, adult DVDs, magazines, adult novelties, leather products, and appearances of porn stars such as Ron Jeremy and Jenna Jameson, nobody gets naked. As far as Calder is concerned, the performers at the event “need to wear bras, then so be it. We’re not here to ruffle any feathers.”
Regardless of enthusiasm or apprehension, other cities have not proven as closed-to-business as Tampa. The Sex and So Much More convention will visit Detroit, Michigan in September, and have already been through Minneapolis and Denver. Greg Lowry, director of sales and marketing for the Colorado Convention Center, counters lascivious assumptions about the nature of Calder’s event by pointing out that his experience with the controversial soiree as “pretty underwhelming, truthfully.”
Calder’s goal is not to cause a sensation, but to “provide a comfortable and safe environment for people to come in and explore their sexuality.” Aimed primarily at couples, Calder insists that although Tampa authorities may be imagining the worst, “it’s a convention; it’s not a cabaret.”
In addition to a tradeshow floor, that includes three days of workshops, contests, and dance performances that include male performers and belly dancers. In her initial application for rental of the 125,000 square foot convention center, Calder assured the director of sales that the event would have no nudity and that performers would wear pasties and thongs at their most exposed. According to Calder, the Sex and So Much More conventions have been so successful that a “copycat show” was held during May, which was “much dirtier and didn’t do so well.”
If the city of Tampa continues to block rental of the publicly owned convention center for the age 19 and above event, Calder foresees a legal battle.
