Post by Dance Away on Nov 12, 2009 11:05:23 GMT -5
This story is brought to you by those ever good and wholesome puritan minded folks who are singing to you the praises of ... a patriarchal tyranny of the censored breast ... (of which, in the absence of, this story would not even be happening ... you getting my angle on this now?) ...
I'll say it again
In the land of the free...
PRODUCT PLACEMENT IS EVERYTHING
Planners approve new digs for topless coffee shop
Vassalboro board vote restores topless coffee shop
kennebecjournal.mainetoday.com/news/local/7085949.html
By Scott Monroe
Staff Writer
Kennebec Journal
11/11/2009
VASSALBORO -- Time to make the coffee and doughnuts again.
The Planning Board on Tuesday night voted 3-0 to approve an amended permit for Donald Crabtree to operate his Grand View Topless Coffee Shop out of an office trailer on his Route 3 property.
After receiving approval, Crabtree said he planned to open today at 6 a.m.
"This will get me back on my feet," Crabtree said.
Crabtree's original coffee shop building, which was also his home, burned to the ground June 4 during a late-night fire that investigators say was intentionally set by an arsonist. The property was not insured.
The fire came the very night that Crabtree was before the Planning Board seeking changes to his existing permit that would have made the topless coffee shop more like a strip club.
On July 14, Crabtree won permission from the Vassalboro Planning Board to construct a new, 3,000-square-foot building on the existing property to replace the one that burned down. That permit allowed him to serve up to 80 customers, up from 25, with hours of operation from to 6 a.m. to 1 a.m.
Planning Board members said Tuesday's approval is considered an amendment to the permit Crabtree was given in July, only now it allows him to run the business out of the 12-foot-by-60-foot commercial trailer until he constructs a new building.
Crabtree said he remodeled the trailer, installing a handicap-accessible bathroom and ramp, a small kitchen, an office and seating area.
Because the trailer is less than 3,000 square feet in size, a permit from the fire marshal's office is not required.
The State Fire Marshal's Office says the trailer's customer capacity is 47 people, Crabtree said. The trailer is on a concrete slab, where it's hooked up to sewer, water, electricity and telephone service.
Paul Mitnik, the town's code enforcement officer, said he inspected the trailer Tuesday morning and found that it met town safety codes.
Mitnik and Crabtree also agreed that the seating capacity allowed by the fire marshal was probably too much, so they agreed 35 would be an appropriate limit.
Now, there are seven tables inside that can seat up to four people each, Mitnik said.
The major issue discussed by Planning Board members was the large pile of debris left over from the burned building. Crabtree estimates it will cost him at least $14,000 to remove the pile, which he thinks is about 1,600 square feet in size. Crabtree said he's already taken three dumptruck-loads away and "it hasn't made a dent."
Board members debated what timeframe Crabtree should be given to remove the debris, which they said is unsightly and potentially an environmental and safety hazard.
Board member Douglas Phillips raised the debris as a concern because "people have brought it to my attention."
During sometimes tense exchanges, Crabtree was critical of the idea that he should have the debris removed immediately because of the high cost.
If the topless coffee shop doesn't reopen, "I'll move out of town and that pile stays; you guys get it."
"You don't need to threaten us," Phillips replied.
Asked by the board for his opinion, neighbor Darren Wood said, "My only comment is it needs to be cleaned up. That pile has got to go."
Board members and Crabtree agreed that, starting in 90 days, he would begin to remove the debris and continue to do so at a rate of one 40-yard truckload per month.
The entire pile must be gone a year from now, in November 2010.
Crabtree said he hopes to have the pile removed by next summer; he also has the option of burying the debris, but Crabtree said he'd rather have it hauled off site.
"I've had five months to think about it and I've made the choice to make this right," Crabtree said. "I don't like looking at the pile myself, but you got to start somewhere."
I'll say it again
In the land of the free...
PRODUCT PLACEMENT IS EVERYTHING