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Crime-plagued Davenport strip club appears to be shuttered for good

DAVENPORT — Unpaid rent finally did what a former city administrator, the Davenport City Council and a litany of assaults, stabbings and a shooting couldn...
Investigators on scene at Chorus Line 2 p.m., 3-22-14, WQAD Photo

DAVENPORT — Unpaid rent finally did what a former city administrator, the Davenport City Council and a litany of assaults, stabbings and a shooting couldn’t: the closure of The Chorus Line strip club on Brady Street.

An eviction noticed was posted on the club’s door by the Scott County Sheriff’s Department recently, after a district judge ruled on July 20 that the company running the club, identified in court records as Evernew Concept, LLC, owed $424,077.34 in back rent to the building owner, identified as GB Property Management out of Chicago.

Attorneys for both parties could not be reached Monday.

Both the Chorus Line – and the lingerie and adult products storefront next to the club, Dr. John’s – were dark and empty Monday afternoon. The lingerie store was also run by the club owners and was at the center of a lawsuit that pitted the strip club against the city of Davenport and former City Administrator Craig Malin.

Malin had the club shut down in 2009 – based on the fact that city ordinances prohibited two adult businesses from occupying the same lot. However, the club owners, represented by attorney Mike Meloy, successfully challenged the closing, arguing that Malin violated the owners’ due process because he made the initial decision to deny the club’s cabaret license and served as the hearing officer who upheld the closing.  A court ruled that the club could re-open in September of 2010 and Meloy and the plaintiffs ultimately received a settlement of $270,000 from the city after a three-year-long court battle.

Since the club reopened in 2010, it had been the scene of several high-profile crimes and dozens of police calls for assaults and other violations. They include:

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