Mustang Sally’s revives plans in Tonawanda
A proposal for a gentlemen’s club has resurfaced in the Town of Tonawanda, on essentially the only street where it could operate: Sawyer Avenue.
Wednesday morning, the town’s State Environmental Quality Review Committee conducted a routine review of 300 Sawyer Ave., the proposed site for Mustang Sally’s.
“It’s now in the area we are going to allow it,” said Councilman John A. Bargnesi Jr., who was involved in zoning law revisions to restrict the location of so-called adult use businesses.
In May, Seventeen Hundred Properties bought 318 Sawyer Ave. for $180,000 and subdivided it into two lots, creating the site for the club at 300 Sawyer. Plans call for expanding a 2,500-square-foot concrete block office building to more than 4,900 square feet.
The same corporation had attempted to open an adult entertainment cabaret on property it owns at 345 Grand Island Blvd. But in May 2007, amid public outcry, the Town Board denied a permit that then was required for such a business.
Last month, the Town Board voted to amend zoning laws, tightening restrictions on where adult use businesses could operate. The new proposal for Mustang Sally’s was submitted days afterward.
Sawyer Avenue, which is about a mile long, runs between River Road and Kenmore Avenue. Though primarily an industrial area, the street includes eight homes that appear to be occupied. Other residences, including a mobile home park, are located on side streets.
Adult use businesses cannot be located within 500 feet of residential property or many public facilities, including schools, parks, civic buildings or places of worship. General industrial districts are the only zones in which they may open.
“They have met all the regulations as far as distances go,” Michael P. Hazen, review committee chairman, noted at Wednesday’s meeting.
Adult use businesses no longer require use permits, which are subject to Town Board approval, but the owner must register with the town clerk.
