By Shane Bevell
Club Omni is contemplating its next move in its fight against Provo City.
Cliff Snow, co-owner of Club Omni, said they plan to continue the fight.
However, Club Omni attorney, Andrew McCullough said they will decide Wednesday, July 5, how far they will go with this battle.
“We don’t know if it is worth our bother,” McCullough said.
Economically it may not make sense, he said.
McCullough said his client would have made a few dollars from the boxing match, but is now spending a lot of money fighting the city.
“This isn’t about Fight Club anymore,” Snow said. “This is about freedom.”
Snow said Dennis Poulsen, a City Council member and bishop of a BYU student ward, purposely holds ward dances to keep students from going to Club Omni.
“It is naive and childish for someone to judge us who has not even been to the club,” Snow said.
Provo City won round two of its battle with Club Omni Friday, June 30.
Judge Ray Harding Jr. granted a preliminary injunction, prohibiting Club Omni from holding boxing events at the dance club.
In his decision, Judge Harding said that holding a boxing event is considered sports assembly and would violate the land-use ordinance.
Richard Secrist, director of community development, testified that Club Omni was in violation of the Provo Business District’s zoning ordinance and could not allow the boxing event to take place.
Secrist said he made a judgement call and decided there was a state of emergency because Club Omni was going to proceed with the event.
The city was granted the temporary restraining order.
“Relying on a city official to say they feel this way or that way and make a judgement call is not adequate,” McCullough said.
“My interpretation of zoning is not the final say and I know that,” Secrist said.
When it was determined that Club Omni was violating the zoning ordinance, Secrist said Club Omni could have appealed its interpretation to the board of adjustments or appealed to the city to change the law.
Club Omni chose not to appeal to the board or seek a change in the law.
Club Omni general manager and co-owner Ken Merena said anybody that believes this is a zoning issue is naive.
“If this is an issue of zoning, why has the zoning administration been excluded from the process?” Merena said.
The only irreparable harm the city can show is a violation of the zoning ordinance, Snow said.
They hide behind the law, he said.
This is not moral entertainment in the view of city officials, Snow said.
“We thought we had a good case,” assistant city attorney Gary McGinn said. “It was a matter of wrong use.”
The litigation between the city and Club Omni proceeds for a permanent injunction.
