ROANOKE TIMES 
                      Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times

DATE: Wednesday, February 14, 1996           TAG: 9602140041
SECTION: CURRENT                  PAGE: NRV-2 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY 
SOURCE: KRISTEN KAMMERER STAFF WRITER 

NO NUDES IS GOOD NEWS IN RADFORD

The Rev. O.D. Morgan, pastor of Calvary Baptist church, stood before City Council members Monday night and thanked them for passing two ordinances that will force exotic dancers in a local bar to cover up.

"Thank you ... for acting decisively on a difficult issue, with dignity and courage," he said.

The ordinances prohibit public nudity and the performance, distribution and/or exhibition of obscenity within city limits. Council considered the ordinances, then passed them in record time. The move was largely the result of the reopening of Bumpers Cafe, a downtown bar that was converted to a club featuring exotic dancing.

Cindy Tolbert, manager of Encore, a gift shop located across the street from Bumpers Cafe, also was pleased by the ruling. "We're trying to keep the downtown clean and nice," she said. "[Bumpers] is not the kind of place you want next to your business. I mean, you wouldn't put it next to Tiffany's in New York."

In other business, council authorized an application for a $25,000 grant from the Virginia Juvenile Community Crime Control Act.

The funding would be used to further develop the city's Community Sentencing Program.

Ken Goodyear, director of parks and recreation, explained that the program would enable courts to order minors to do work for the city such as painting, mowing and cleaning public buildings and parks after floods. Goodyear said the program offers an alternative to jail time and that under his department's supervision it has had a fairly high success rate. He admitted, however, that "there are some kids you just can't change."

The council also appropriated $625,400 to increase the capacity of the city's electric system. The increase involves upgrading three electric stations that are operating at full capacity because of increased business and extra-cold weather.

W.E. Willis, director of the electric department, said the money would come from the city's capital improvements budget and would not result in rate increases to customers.

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