By MONROE ROARK
mroark@TheCitizenNews.com

More than 200 people crammed into the meeting chambers at Fayetteville City Hall Tuesday night, the vast majority of them with a single message -- keep Hooters out of Fayette County.

Most of the crowd gathered 30 minutes before the Fayetteville Planning and Zoning Commission meeting around the fountain in front of the Fayette County government complex for a time of prayer, then marched across Ga. Highway 85 to voice their opinions to the commission.

A development plan is now under consideration for a Hooters restaurant at Banks Road and Ga. Highway 314. When the issue was placed on Tuesday night's agenda, concerned citizens spread the word by telephone and at various Sunday morning church services.

For more than an hour, the commissioners listened as people expressed their concerns that an establishment such as Hooters would pose a serious threat to families in the county, most of whom said they moved here because of the kind of values that are 180 degrees removed from what Hooters represents.The restaurant chain is known across the country primarily for its "Hooters girls," who serve customers in T-shirts and bright orange shorts.

The applicants spoke very briefly and mostly addressed the actual development plan. The proposal is consistent with the current zoning for the site, which is C-3, and the land use plan calls for "highway commercial" usage there, according to a city staff memo.

The crowd first made its presence known when commissioner Allen Feldman began to ask what kind of activity is common in a Hooters restaurant. He was only able to get out the words, "I've never been in a Hooters...." when thunderous applause erupted, after which several people shouted, "Me, neither."

An attorney representing Hooters emphasized that the restaurants serve no alcohol, only beer and wine. He added that Hooters girls project an"all-American, girl next door" image.

That didn't sit well with most of the audience, who spent the next hour telling the commissioners that they considered Hooters only a short step above a strip club and bordering on the pornographic.

"They serve lust for lunch, and we don't want it," was how one speaker put it. "People don't go there for food any more than they read Playboy for the articles."

A number of speakers stated that allowing establishments such as this would be detrimental to families and a negative influence on everyone, especially children.

Also of concern was what many felt was a strong possibility that allowing Hooters would lead to an invasion of businesses such as the New York Video store in the Shannon Mall area, an establishment that specializes in adult entertainment materials.

John Hatcher, a local pastor, acknowledged that the commission has laws and regulations it must abide by, but he added, "There's a higher law," and suggested that a crowd such as this could be an indication that the city may have a good reason to take a stand even if it has to defend itself in court.

Hooters of America chairman Bob Brooks, a Fayette County resident, was not present at the meeting, and his absence was not unnoticed.

"I wish Bob Brooks were sitting here to hear how his fellow citizens feel," said Woody Johnson, who reiterated Hatcher's statement that the commission does not have the final authority to quash the plan, but added, "I know Brooks could stop it tomorrow."

Johnson added that he knew many of the people standing behind him as he spoke would return for future meetings whenever necessary.

After the public comment phase was closed, commission chairman Myron Coxe invited the applicants to return and address whatever issues they wished. They declined.
Commissioner Al Lipscomb said that she would like a legal opinion on whether Hooters would be considered a "sexually oriented business," which according to city ordinances must be located in manufacturing or industrial areas. She told the audience that their complaints should be addressed to Hooters management as well as the city, and she has an obligation to protect the city in areas where it could be sued.

Feldman followed up on those remarks by saying that a constitutional issue is also involved here, provided city codes and ordinances are met and the zoning is appropriate. "He [the developer] can build this one of two ways -- with his own money, or with your money" if the city denies him and he wins in court, Feldman said.

One issue that was lost in the moral debate was the more concrete issue of road improvements. Lipscomb pointed out early in the discussion that JDN, the company responsible for the overall Applebee's/Eckerd/Hooters site, was to complete certain improvements on Banks Road before any development beyond Applebee's and Eckerd was to commence, and had not yet done so.

One resident said that anyone interested in obtaining contact information for Hooters to let the company know how he or she feels about the development plan can go to www.newhopebc.org , the web site for New Hope Baptist Church in Fayetteville, and get that information.

The issue will be revisited at the commission's July 25 meeting, which is its voting meeting for this month.