Shreveport Files Suit to Fight Adult Oriented Businesses

A Caddo District Court Judge has signed a temporary restraining order stopping the Hustler Hollywood retail store from opening on Financial Plaza in west Shreveport later this month.

But this order also includes the 2 Cindies stores that operate in the city. One is on Shreveport Barksdale Highway and the other on Mansfield Road.

The city filed suit against the businesses claiming they are sexually oriented businesses and are operating without a special use permit which is required. Judge Ramon Lafitte granted the order and set a hearing in the case for November 14.

Cindies on Shreveport Barksdale has been open for more than a dozen years and moved into their new location in 2018. The Mansfield Road store has been open for a couple of years.

City inspectors went out to these businesses last week to find out what they are selling and to determine if they should be classified as sexually oriented businesses. Those kinds of businesses require a special use permit. The inspectors determined the Cindies stores should be required to get the special permit. The lawsuit alleges all 3 businesses claim they are retail stores and not sexually oriented  businesses.

The city ordinance says if more than 20% of your sales are for sexual items, you are a "Sexually Oriented Business" and need special permissions to operate. KTBS reports Hustler Hollywood submitted floor plans to the Shreveport Metropolitan Planning Commission saying it would sell sexually oriented items in a separate area and it would not a designated area but indicated it would be less than 20 percent of its display space. In early October, Hustler Hollywood asked the city for a certificate of occupancy to operate as a retail store.

The the TRO, Judge Lafitte is requiring that all videos and pictures of the stores be submitted as evidence and be sealed because of the nature of the images.