Pastor furious as saucy strip club set to open across street from his church
A strip club has been given the green light to open directly opposite a church after every race meeting at Cheltenham next year.
The sexual entertainment venue run by Red Apple Associates Ltd has been granted permission to open for 17 nights in 2024 at Jessop House in the town centre.
And it’s safe to say the pastor at the neighbouring Cambray Baptist Church is not best pleased about the decision.
Alwyn Barry said it was ‘more offensive’ than putting a pub ‘opposite an Alcoholics Anonymous venue’.
As many as 500 customers flock to the saucy Eroticats club, which is owned by Steven Burrows, on the nights it’s open.
An application to allow the venue to operate after each race meeting at Cheltenham race track was met with strong opposition and 35 letters were sent by furious locals to object.
But it was given the go-ahead at a Cheltenham Borough Council meeting after members said they could not take a moral stance on the issue.
Mr Barry told councillors that they ‘had no idea how deeply hurtful’ it was to allow this type of business to open so close to a place of worship.
The BBC reported that he said: ‘It’s much more offensive than placing a pub immediately opposite an Alcoholics Anonymous venue. Or a betting shop at the entrance of a gambler’s rehab centre.
‘Where marriage is upheld, immediately opposite us licentiousness is being promoted. Where family life is honoured, immediately opposite us, infidelity is offered.
‘Where women’s value is held in the highest regard, immediately opposite us, the objectification of women is normalised. Where new life is offered, immediately opposite us, broken lives are served.
‘It’s discriminatory for Christians for such a venue to be placed in this location. The Christians in Cheltenham are not being offered equal concern that is being given elsewhere in the country to mosques and synagogues.’
In making the decision, councillors said the venue could not be held responsible for the behaviour of the tens of thousands of people that go to the races each day of the Cheltenham Festival.
Owner Mr Burrows said the venue has between 400 to 500 customers each night and will operate as a cafe during the day.
He said police had no objections and described it as a ‘highly regulated area’ and rejected claims it would affect people going to church.
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