BF2S Forums Topless Coffee Shop Approved!

VASSALBORO, Maine - Planning officials in Vassalboro unanimously approved Tuesday evening a proposal for a topless coffee shop in their rural town.

The planning board reviewed the application and deemed it meets all of the ordinances regarding traffic, parking and lighting. The panel voted 5-0 late Tuesday to approve the project.

The proposed topless coffee shop would take over the former Mac Daddy's Pub at the Fat Cat Grille along busy Route 3. What used to be the Grand View Motel, an Ellsworth businessman hopes customers will come inside for a view.

The owner kept a low-profile until Tuesday's meeting. There have been restaurants and bars, but the building -- with its log-cabin façade -- remained empty for four years.

Vassalboro is the kind of rural town where wild turkeys run, and some longtime residents like Debbie Jordan said Monday they prefer not to have a topless coffee shop move in.

"We just found out about it this morning and we are opposed to it," she said. "It's not going to bring in a good crowd, and we've had those kinds of things in the past with it being a bar and it can get very loud."

Not everyone in the small town thought the proposal was a bad idea. Some neighbors said a former business at the same location used to bring in female dancers from time to time without any problems.

"I say, bring the money in," said Kevin Goodrich, a resident. "People need jobs and it's a good place to go. The economy's not very good right now, so why not do it?"

The planning board has no jurisdiction over employee attire, and there is no ordinance in Vassalboro that prohibits adult entertainment.