FAST FACTS:
(Cordova 8/20/2009) A controversial restaurant in Cordova will open next month.
Stella Marris is located on Fischer Steel Road near Trinity and Germantown Parkway. It's owned by strip club mogul Steve Cooper.
WREG got a sneak peek inside. Manager Craig Patton describes it as an upscale steak and seafood restaurant by day, with a club feel to it at night.
Residents like Brian Stephens fear the place will eventually morph into a topless nightclub.
"We're gonna stop this one in its tracks like we have from day one," he said.
However, Patton says Cooper has never mentioned any plans to turn the restaurant into a strip club. From the elaborate chandeliers to the expensive tabletops, he says everything including the private rooms upstairs, are for upscale cuisine, nothing more.
"It seats 320 people, there's a banquet hall upstairs," he added.
We asked why the windows are tinted black. Patton replied, "I asked [Steve Cooper] that question, you know what his response was? It actually makes a lot of sense. Climate control."
The county says because the building's located across the street from a youth baseball park and near a residential neighborhood, it would be difficult for Cooper to get a permit to turn it into a strip club.
"They said that about Platinum Plus and a hundred other places that changed down the road, I guess I'm not willing to drink the Kool-Aid anymore," said Stephens.
We asked him if there was anything Cooper could do to assure him the restaurant would never be turned into a club. Stephens replied, " Absolutely. Sell it to someone who runs restaurants."
Stella Marris has all of the permits it needs to open, but will go before the beer board September 2nd at 9:00 a.m. to receive its beer permit.
Stephens says plenty of Cordova residents will be there.
- Stella Marris set to open in September
- Restaurant is owned by strip club mogul Steve Cooper
- Some residents fear it will be turned into a topless club
(Cordova 8/20/2009) A controversial restaurant in Cordova will open next month.
Stella Marris is located on Fischer Steel Road near Trinity and Germantown Parkway. It's owned by strip club mogul Steve Cooper.
WREG got a sneak peek inside. Manager Craig Patton describes it as an upscale steak and seafood restaurant by day, with a club feel to it at night.
Residents like Brian Stephens fear the place will eventually morph into a topless nightclub.
"We're gonna stop this one in its tracks like we have from day one," he said.
However, Patton says Cooper has never mentioned any plans to turn the restaurant into a strip club. From the elaborate chandeliers to the expensive tabletops, he says everything including the private rooms upstairs, are for upscale cuisine, nothing more.
"It seats 320 people, there's a banquet hall upstairs," he added.
We asked why the windows are tinted black. Patton replied, "I asked [Steve Cooper] that question, you know what his response was? It actually makes a lot of sense. Climate control."
The county says because the building's located across the street from a youth baseball park and near a residential neighborhood, it would be difficult for Cooper to get a permit to turn it into a strip club.
"They said that about Platinum Plus and a hundred other places that changed down the road, I guess I'm not willing to drink the Kool-Aid anymore," said Stephens.
We asked him if there was anything Cooper could do to assure him the restaurant would never be turned into a club. Stephens replied, " Absolutely. Sell it to someone who runs restaurants."
Stella Marris has all of the permits it needs to open, but will go before the beer board September 2nd at 9:00 a.m. to receive its beer permit.
Stephens says plenty of Cordova residents will be there.
