No action has been taken by the City Council on a conditional use permit request by Midnite Rodeo of Clinton, LLC to operate an entertainment facility in a 19,000-square-foot building off Southeast Boulevard, behind BB&T Bank next to Roses.
However planning officials said owner and operator Paul Scoggins, who was not present at Tuesday’s Council meeting, told them of his intention to withdraw his request following a May 18 Planning and Zoning Board meeting. Scoggins was present then, where the request was recommended for denial by a 4-1 vote.
The Planning and Zoning Board gives a recommendation based on four conditional use permit standards, taking into account public health and safety concerns. That recommendation then goes to the City Council, which votes to approve or deny the request using the same four standards.
During the May 18 planning meeting, board members questioned Scoggins about his association with a similar entertainment venue in Fayetteville, which was forced to close its doors after being deemed a public nuisance.
Jeff Vreugdenhil, director of Clinton-Sampson Planning and Development, said Scoggins told of his intention to throw out his request following that meeting, however a formal withdrawal of the request was not submitted, Vreugdenhil noted.
Clinton mayor Lew Starling said the matter would be placed on the City Council’s agenda for a fourth straight month in July.
Scoggins initially came before the Planning and Zoning Board in March and told the board the business would be open two to three days a week, from around 7 p.m. to no later than 2 a.m. Scoggins said the entertainment facility, to be located at 403 Southeast Blvd., would be available for weddings, birthdays, political rallies, fundraisers and single-night promotions that would include bands.
Additionally, the venue would employ more than a dozen people and various amenities would include a mechanical bull, surf board and calf roping horse, as well as a Velcro fly wall, real horse and carriages, a hay ride wagon and stage coach. The business would reach out to the local children, charities and the Hispanic population, Scoggins stated.
It has since been brought to light by Clinton Police Department officials that, at around the time Scoggins was making the initial request to the Planning Board in March, another of his businesses was in the process of being closed down for good.
The “Palamino” in Fayetteville was ordered to be permanently closed in March by a Cumberland County Superior Court judge because it was deemed a public nuisance and a site for criminal activity.
At last month’s Planning and Zoning Board meeting, board chairman Donald Summerlin asked Scoggins about his involvement with the club.
Scoggins said he was involved in the operation of the Palamino, with which there were few problems when it was located on Owen Drive. When it moved to the Massey Hills area of Fayetteville, Scoggins remarked, the business was located next to a handful of other clubs that contributed to problems.
At the Clinton site, according to Scoggins’ lease, there would be no other clubs permitted in the Roses shopping center. Also, only beer — and no other alcohol — would be sold at the establishment.
Clinton police Chief Mike Brim has said his main concern was public welfare. He attested that he did not wish to prevent any business from locating to Clinton, but was concerned about Scoggins’ association with the Palamino.
Brim told Planning Board members he had only 33 sworn officers in his department, a police force whose numbers pale in comparison to those had by the Fayetteville Police Department. Such a diminished amount of officers would make it more difficult to address the kinds of activity which may come with an entertainment facility like Midnite Rodeo, the police chief said.
Scoggins told Planning Board members he did not want to cause any problems for Clinton and would not stay if such problems arose.
While no one has spoken in opposition to the request during the City Council meeting, or in person at the Planning Board meeting, a one-sentence letter written by ABC Board chairwoman Shurley McCullen shared a blanket opposition, saying those problems likely would arise.
“Locating the (Midnite) Rodeo at 403 SE Boulevard could cause unwanted problems for the businesses and people across the highway,” the letter states. The ABC store is one of the businesses located across Southeast Boulevard from Zeng’s and Roses.
Of the 4-1 tally, Planning Board member Bob Werner was the only one who cast dissenting votes. Voting on the set of standards, Werner voted the Midnite Rodeo would not endanger public health and safety, be injurious to the use and enjoyment of other property in the vicinity or diminish and impair property values. It would be in overall harmony with the area in which it is to be located, his vote reflected.
Summerlin and board members Bennie Peterson, Hugh Carr and Beth Stewart voted to recommend the request for denial. The City Council still has to vote on the issue, unless a formal withdrawal of the request is submitted.
Chris Berendt can be reached at 910-592-8137, ext. 121, or by e-mail at sicrime@myclintonnc.com.
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