A sign at the Little Darlings adult entertainment club advertises the business as the “only club still open” Thursday, March 19, 2020.
Thursday, March 19, 2020 | 6:25 p.m.
Related content
Keeping the gentlemen’s club he manages open in Las Vegas when the state has ordered it temporarily shuttered to prevent the spread of coronavirus was an easy decision for Ryan Carlson.
COVID-19 is no more dangerous than a seasonal cold, he says. The deaths resulting from the coronavirus will likely pale in comparison to the “many more” people killed this year by tobacco and sugary treats.
He reasons that if government hasn’t banned cigarettes or sodas, why should Little Darlings shut its doors?
“I think the concern level is the governor is destroying the Nevada economy in a severe overreaction to what is akin to the cold,” Carlson said of Gov. Steve Sisolak’s order that all nonessential businesses close for 30 days to mitigate the spread of the coronavirus, which is nearing 100 confirmed infections in Nevada, mostly in Clark County.
Little Darlings is believed to be the only Las Vegas adult club still open.
Though sternly given, Sisolak’s directive, which included casinos, bars, dine-in restaurants, theaters and nightclubs, had no apparent legal ramifications. Metro Police said Thursday that it couldn’t enforce the directive without receiving an executive order from a government entity.
“We have no lawful reason,” Metro Officer Larry Hadfield said. “It’s not ours to enforce.”
Sisolak’s office could not be reached for comment on possible enforcement.
“We just view it as ... the world can’t stop spinning for a cold. Strippers are part of the American fabric of life, and a business that’s been around 30 years can’t just stop for something as trivial,” Carlson said.
Though blunt in his assessment, with which epidemiologists disagree, Carlson described steps the strip club has taken to implement some of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention distancing and sanitation recommendations. He said dancers were not allowed closer than 6 feet from clients, meaning lap dances have been suspended, he said.
Carlson said the club will soon offer drive-up peep shows in which motorists could catch an exotic dance from a safe distance through a privacy tent in the comfort of their own vehicles.
Manager Johnny T. gets hand sanitizer from a dispenser in the lobby of the Little Darlings adult entertainment club on Western Avenue Thursday, March 19, 2020.
For customers inside the club, distancing has been assured by furniture being shuffled around, Carlson said. Experts argue that measures like distancing help slow the virus, keeping it from overrunning health care facilities.
Sanitation crews clean all “commonly touched” areas three times a day, while employees have to wash their hands with warm, soapy water every 30 minutes, Carlson said. Employees not feeling well are instructed to stay home, and staff must go through temperature checks, Carlson said.
Staff who don’t feel comfortable coming in are excused from missing work, he said.
“Anyone who wants to remain home or doesn’t feel comfortable making thousands of dollars a night like they normally would is more than welcome to stay home and they have no obligation to report to work or to perform,” Carlson said.
The air filters on the “very, very expensive purification system have been changed,” he added. He said there were about 15 sanitation stations throughout the club, 1514 Western Ave., which closes for a few hours early mornings. Despite Las Vegans' distancing attempts this week, the average attendance of a few hundred customers each day hadn’t taken much of a hit, he said.
“We’re taking every precaution possible,” Carlson said. “It’s really probably safer than your home,” where Sisolak, with recommendation from health officials said Nevadans should remain home to prevent the spread of the virus.
He said operators of Little Darlings, which run several other businesses in the valley, have consulted with business licensing authorities about remaining open, and cited Metro Police’s announcement that it was powerless to enforce Sisolak’s directive without an executive order.
Places like grocery stores, pharmacies and banks should remain open, according to Sisolak’s directive.
If there was a legal order to shut down, Carlson said, the strip club would close its doors. “All of our businesses operate lawfully, and if there was a business that was ordered to close we would 100 percent close immediately,” Carlson said.
About safety guidelines, Carlson concluded, “We’re following them more than probably any other business doing it because we value our guests' safety.”
