Lynn City Council: Nude art OK, but Full Monty is not

LYNN – The artwork of Michelangelo dominated part of a City Council discussion Tuesday over whether it might fall prey to a proposed ordinance regulating adult entertainment in Lynn.After all, Michelangelo’s statue of David is among the world’s best-known nudes and preventing nudity is what prompted councilors to call for such an ordinance.”I’m not sure where art falls in the guidelines here,” said Jocelyn Almy-Testa, owner of the Little Gallery Under the Stairs (TLGUTS) in Central Square.The gallery owner asked the council to distinguish art from adult entertainment when wording the law.”There has been nudity in art since the beginning of time,” she said, adding that TLGUTS employs nude models for art classes, as does the community college. “I want to make sure. We are trying to build an art community here and we don’t want to be left out.”Almy-Testa emphasized that state law allows public breast feeding of infants and she also expressed concern that the council would use the ordinance to impose stiff special permit fees for various arts events.Local artist Corey Jackson said artists should not be forced to seek special permits for work that contains nudity. He noted that some Massachusetts communities shut down productions of “The Full Monty” because of its adult content.Chris Barber, owner of the new Subterranean book shop in Central Square, said his shelves are stocked with books on art, history, humor and those from academic presses, some of which might contain explicit descriptions of human sexuality. He asked if these tomes are in violation of the ordinance.Attorney James Lamanna of the Law Department said adult-content books must not exceed 10 percent of the overall number of books for sale. As he put it, if 90 percent of the store’s sales are devoted to Macbeth and Shakespeare, Barber would be within the law. Lamanna also explained that nude modeling differs under the law from nude dancing, which is not allowed.It was the mere mention of a strip club by Rafael Subero, president of the Lynn Restaurant Owners’ Association, that sparked the debate leading to the proposed ordinance. Subero was doing research at City Hall on the subject of adult entertainment when Council President Timothy Phelan got wind of it.Ward 5 Councilor Brendan Crighton offered an amendment that would lower the fee for a special permit from $2,500 to $175, explaining that the council could require such a permit for stage productions. The amendment passed, as did the ordinance regulating “adult entertainment and sexually-oriented businesses in the city”, which confines them to neighborhoods zoned for heavy industry.Additionally, the ordinance prohibits these businesses from operating within 500 feet of any school, church, library, park or daycare center.Attorney Frederick Riley, representing the Lynn restaurant owners, told the council Tuesday that the association favors the ordinance and never supported the concept of a strip club.”Never did I hear mention of a strip club or adult entertainment. I want to clear up that misconception,” he said.