Jun 01, 2007  |  By: LOU CHIBBARO J  | COMMENTS     

Thomas and other opponents of his bill before Tuesday’s Council vote.

“I’m in discussion over a possible middle ground in response to the concerns of the Ward 5 community,” he said.

“It’s right now kind of a moving object. So we haven’t pinned it down. We are trying our best.”

Graham’s talk of a possible compromise came after other Council members, including gay Councilmember David Catania (D-At-Large), expressed some reservations over Graham’s bill. They had initially expressed support for allowing the displaced clubs to relocate.

“I’m not sure where I am on this, but I’ve got to be honest with you, there is some equity on the part of these businesses,” the Washington Times quoted Catania as saying to a group of opponents who approached him outside his office at city hall.

“The solution is to find a way to distribute these businesses in a way so there’s no over concentration,” the Times quoted him as saying.

Rick Rosendall, vice president of the Gay & Lesbian Activists Alliance, which has lobbied Council in support of Graham’s bill, said he was troubled over what he called “inflammatory rhetoric” surfacing against the legislation.

“We are focusing on the merits of the issue and trying to avoid escalating the tone of the rhetoric,” he said. “Feeding the tone of hysteria and rancor gets in the way of our message, which is one of general fairness for these displaced businesses.”

Rosendall said GLAA is concerned that Thomas’ planned amendments to Graham’s bill, which some Council members are now considering, could eliminate any chance for the clubs to reopen.

“There is no point in passing a bill that you amend to death,” he said. “If you amend away the remedy, then you have defeated the bill.”

“We have an international, cosmopolitan city,” Rosendall said. “People expect a nightlife where they have choices. To erase gay-oriented adult entertainment from the map of the city is wrong.”

Thomas said that among the amendments he is considering is a requirement that the city allow the displaced clubs to move into the zone where the new Washington Nationals baseball stadium is located. City officials have long said they want restaurants, hotels and other businesses to move near the new stadium, but any talk of adult entertainment businesses near the ballpark is likely to draw strong opposition.

Club owners have pointed out the stadium is not scheduled to open until April 2008 and that nearby buildings intended to accommodate businesses may not be built until several years later. Gay nightlife advocate Mark Lee has said the displaced entertainment businesses could not survive a prolonged period in which they remain closed.