Winter Park strips Booby Trap off the map

Winter Park is in for a major breast reduction.

City Commissioners voted Monday to acquire the property at 2600 Lee Road and demolish the existing business: a gentleman’s club with an infamously curvaceous shape.

The twin-domed profile of Christie’s Cabaret, formerly known as Club Harem and the Booby Trap, has drawn stares along Lee Road just east of Interstate 4 since the 1970s. The club has changed hands several times over the years; a sign still stands today reading Club Rio, another previous name.

But an ongoing dispute between the property owner and Christie’s Cabaret over the current land use has led to the property going up for sale. Adult entertainment would normally be prohibited on the zoned land, but the gentleman’s club was grandfathered in when the property was annexed into the city in 2004.

The club could stay as long as it did business at least once within a 90-day span, which the city claims the club failed to do.

The property owner offered the land to the city in an effort to end the legal quarrel.

Winter Park purchased the property for $990,000.

“I want it to come down now,” Commissioner Carolyn Cooper said.

Mayor Ken Bradley said he voted to purchase the land and demolish the club due to its history of criminal activity, including illegal drugs and car theft.

“Unfortunately sometimes there are legal businesses that have illegal activities that are festered and fostered by it,” Bradley said. “The action tonight was our opportunity to improve an area of our community that long-term will have a much better use.”

The city paid extra for the opportunity to get the infamous building taken down. City Manager Randy Knight said the property had been appraised for $830,000, but that the city could save money by avoiding legal costs and staff hours.

Resident Steven Roberts said the city is paying too much to remove what they see as an eyesore.

“I don’t have any real problem with the building being there and I don’t have a problem getting rid of it,” Roberts said. “What I have a problem with is losing money doing it.”

“That’s $160,000 for the sake of getting rid of a couple of boobs on Lee Road. That to me seems extreme.”

Roberts also suggested that purchasing the property would set a bad precedent for businesses and residents.

“It sets a precedent that, if I become a pain in the butt to the city of Winter Park and I break some ordinances, I can then come to you and can say, ‘Hey can I get a premium for my house and I’ll move?’” Roberts said.

Bradley denied that the motion set any kind of precedent.

The gentleman’s club is expected to be demolished within 30 days after the sale closes.