KC area sex club operated outside of Jackson County laws. New ordinance cracks down
It will be harder for sex clubs like The Spott to operate in Jackson County following the recent passage of an ordinance that addresses regulatory gaps related to those businesses.
The county Legislature on March 14 voted unanimously to adopt Ordinance 5721, which adds a new category of adult entertainment business called “sexual encounter establishments” to the county code. Alcohol cannot be sold or consumed at such establishments, and they are prohibited from staying open past midnight.
“The Spott fell through the cracks in our laws,” said Jackson County Legislator Jalen Anderson, who introduced the ordinance and represents the 1st District at-large, where The Spott is located. “This ordinance basically says that they will now be regulated the same way we already regulate strip clubs and adult bookstores.”
The action comes on the heels of The Star’s January investigation into the lack of oversight and enforcement at The Spott, a swingers club in Blue Summit, an unincorporated section of Jackson County. The club stayed open until 5 a.m. on Saturdays, had no liquor license, and was a longtime nuisance in the area. The county counselor’s office drafted the ordinance with the help of the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office, which was called to The Spott more than 100 times between 2016 and 2022 for noise complaints, shootings, health code violations, theft and rape.
The new law defines a sexual encounter establishment as “an establishment other than a hotel, motel, or similar establishment offering public accommodations, which … provides a place where two or more persons may congregate, associate, or consort in connection with specified sexual activities or the exposure of specified anatomical areas.”
The ordinance doesn’t prohibit such venues from inviting guests to walk around in states of undress or engaging in sexual acts. “It’s narrowly tailored to address the public safety issues that came to our attention,” Chief Deputy County Counselor Jay Haden told The Star.
The Spott has been closed since a Missouri Highway Patrol raid in February 2022. Its owner, Jeffrey Cline, faces several pending charges, including for failure to pay state taxes, tax evasion, and conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine. His trial for the tax charges is set for May.
Cline did not respond to a request for comment. His attorney, Nicole Forsythe, declined to comment.
