Treasures’ fate awaits decision by City Council

Sito Negron

Friday, Sept. 10, 2004 | 9:18 a.m.

It's anyone's guess what will happen to Treasures next week, when the strip club's temporary liquor license expires and the Las Vegas City Council is to decide whether to grant a permanent extension.

Two new reports supplied to the City Council -- one regarding Treasures' financial transactions, the other comparing erotic dance code violations at Las Vegas strip clubs -- do not appear to provide significant ammunition for one side or the other.

The financial report looked at whether Treasures engaged in "structured withdrawals." That means a transaction in which someone withdraws amounts from bank accounts of just less than $10,000, the point at which filing a federal tax report is required.

Texas officials are investigating the Davari brothers, owners of Treasures, as well as clubs in Houston because of a number of such transactions involving the Texas clubs.

City Auditor Radford Snelding determined no such transactions took place at Treasures.

The report given to council members also compared the number of soliciting prostitution and erotic dance code violations at Treasures and other clubs through August 2004. The clubs are not named.

During six visits in eight months this year, Metro Police made no prostitution arrests and wrote 13 erotic dance code violation citations at Treasures. By comparison the other businesses ranged from one erotic dance code violation in one visit to 28 erotic dance code violations in eight visits. Only one club, identified as Club A in the report, showed prostitution arrests -- two during one visit.

It has been widely rumored that the Treasures lawyers will present their own report, which will show Treasures as having a much better record than other clubs.

However, one of the Treasures lawyers, Jon Leleu, would not confirm the reports.

"During the last hearing Councilman (Larry) Brown asked the people that were involved with this hearing not to play out or discuss or try these issues in the press. We would like to honor that request," he said.

Brown said that the city report "just adds another layer of evidence, just something else to review. The bottom line and at times we lose sight of it, is the suitability of the Davari brothers to hold a liquor license in the city of Las Vegas."

He pointed to the contentious hearings in 2001, at which council members were told horror stories about the uncontrolled use of drugs and sex at the Davari brothers' Houston clubs.

Before granting a temporary license, the council extracted a promise from the lead Treasures lawyer, Mark Fiorentino, that if any convictions took place the club would surrender its license if asked.

One Treasures dancer was convicted of prostitution, but Fiorentino has tried to take the focus off his promise and place it on what he called were unprecedented steps taken by Treasures to ensure compliance with the law.

That included hiring a former Metro detective to oversee such procedures as random drug sweeps, background checks and a no-tolerance policy for dancers who break the law.

Brown said that he sees three points to consider: The promise made in 2001, the steps taken by Treasures to ensure legal compliance and the issue of the Houston financial investigation.

With all of that to consider, he said, "I am still going into Wednesday's hearing with an open mind."

"They have failed to fulfill at least one of the promises they made. However unrealistic it was, it was made," Brown said. "Secondly, I think the standard of operations, raising the bar, that's going to be given some great (weight) on Wednesday. I think it's important, I really do."

Brown said the decision Wednesday comes down to a "pass-fail." Treasures is not eligible for another temporary license, and the current one expires Sept. 16.

One question that has not yet been answered is whether there is another option, such as a penalty for poor performance.

"If the option is not temporary renewal, are there other options than a pass-fail grade? I have not been briefed, but I'm sure they'll come in the mix come Wednesday," Brown said.

Also adding to the drama: Only five members of council have voted on the issue -- Mayor Oscar Goodman has abstained because his son Ross Goodman represents Treasures dancers, and Councilman Michael Mack has abstained because he has a consulting contract with the club.

Goodman said Thursday that if the discussion became broader than just the Treasures issue, he would like to take part in the conversation.