PULASKI, PA. Store owner awaits ruling on licenses

The adult bookstore owner says business is booming, and he has complied with the law.
By LAURE CIOFFI
VINDICATOR NEW CASTLE BUREAU
PULASKI, Pa. -- When word spread in this rural community that an adult bookstore was planning to locate on U.S. Route 422, large crowds gathered for meetings, a coalition of religious leaders formed and pickets lined up to protest it.
Two years later, the adult novelty shop, Adultland XXX, remains open just a few miles from the Ohio border, but the organized community opposition has waned.
"There is a certain amount of complacency or resignation that has set in the township. Life goes on. You go about your business," said William Morrison, a retired biology professor who was part of the early protests.
"However, there is still an undercurrent. We are willing to wait and be patient, wait for the court system to run its course."
Appeal in court: Store owner Eric Boron of Salem, Ohio, is appealing a decision made by the township police chief to deny the store and its employees licenses under the township's adult business law after finding violations during an inspection.
Boron initially balked at even applying for the licenses because the township law had been passed months after his store opened. He eventually filled out license applications after being ordered to do so by a Lawrence County judge.
Boron's appeal of the license denial is in Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court. His attorneys argue the adult business law is unconstitutional and the store should not have to comply because the law was passed after the business opened.
The matter likely will be resolved sometime this summer, said Bernard Matthews, a Pittsburgh attorney hired by the township to craft the licensing law and defend it in court.
The legal battle has left early opponents with little hope to hang onto.
Opponent: "It's dragged on for years, and I suppose it could drag on for many more years before it's resolved," said the Rev. Robert Dayton, pastor of the Mahoning Presbyterian Church. "The place is there, and it's a blot in the community. No one likes it, but we are stumbling in the dark. We have lost our way."
The Rev. Mr. Dayton was one of several leaders who formed the Coalition Against Pornography in Pulaski in early 2000. The group no longer meets, but Mr. Dayton said it would gather again if there were something they could do to help shut down the store. Patrons at Flowers 'N' That, a florist and bake shop next to the bookstore, often ask for updates of Adultland's status, said owner Ronda Rochow-Miller.
cioffi@vindy.com