Scaldoni's is a locally operated restaurant trying to offer more to their customers, but when dancing was offered, the city put a stop to it.
Scaldoni's, 1183 E. 100 South, offered a club-like atmosphere featuring live music and a live DJ. People could eat, dance and mingle. The dancing was discontinued due to lack of a dance hall permit.
St. George has had a few dance clubs in the past including Digitz and Sub Zero located off of St. George Boulevard, and the 2 Lazy 2 Ranch which also featured Area 51 located in Washington. Clubs allowing people under 21 have not had enough support from the community to stay open longer than a year.
These dance clubs came and went like the pattern seen now with restaurants trying to offer more than just a good meal. The lack of dance hall permits were due to a misconception that the permits are unattainable.
"I had a lot of fun on Wednesday nights," St. George resident Amber Dorius said. "I used to go to Mesquite to dance."
The difference between a dance club in St. George and a club in Mesquite is that the casinos fund the club and keep it running. Often when a place opens for dancing it is busy for a while. However, people lose interest and there isn't enough money to keep the business going.
Local Disc Jockey Lex de Azevedo II, know as "Lex" is familiar with the dance hall permit. He was hired at Scaldoni's as entertainment simply for atmosphere purposes.
Lex said: "When I DJ'd at Scaldoni's, the ads never said there would be dancing. It was very clear the music was for entertainment only."
Frustrations aren't felt only by those hired, but also by those who do the hiring.
"What are we allowed to do here?" Scaldoni's owner Johnny DeVivo said. "I want to offer a place where my customers can have a good time."
An annual inspection of restaurants was conducted at Scaldoni's when the city discovered the restaurant had no permit and any dancing was discontinued immediately thereafter.
If restaurants do continue to operate without permits they may receive a reprimand from the Utah Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control.
"I have lived in St. George all of my life and my work in the National Guard has taken me all over," said Travis Larson, a freshman general education major from St. George. "I'm surprised we don't have anywhere to dance besides the Elks."
Dancing is not permitted in any place that doesn't have the correct permit in order. The reason being safety and following the law.
One of the reasons why restaurants may not be able to obtain a dance permit is the fact that they have an alcohol permit.
"You would think dancing would be encouraged, because the more you dance the less you would drink," Larson said. "In most places I have been in you can't drink on the dance floor." According to the license requirements stated on the site, a business needs to meet requirements like parking and zoning that can be approved by the city. Most of these permits get used for golf course private clubs, such as the Bloomington Country Club.
A dance hall license isn't difficult to obtain, according to the 3-2A-4 code explained on the Web site.
The Web site http://www.ci.st-george.ut.us links to the city codes and ordinances, and from there one can find information about the permit's specifications.
Marc Mortensen, assistant to the city manager, said the reason for the dance hall permit is simply to make sure the place of business is zoned for safety and parking and so noise will be under control.
Anyone can apply for a dance hall permit. The permits are not hard to apply for. A business or individual needs to have everything in order, expect an inspection, and have a week to a month for the city council to make a decision, Mortensen said.
"The city doesn't want to discourage dancing," Mortensen said. "That has nothing to do with it. It's about following the law."
DeVivo wants to keep the energy up and the atmosphere lively even though there is no dancing. He plans to stream music for the backdrop and plans on bringing in other forms of entertainment, such as comedy shows.
Until a dance club is open in St. George the community must find different ways of night life entertainment. If a dance club should open it will only survive with the support of the community behind it.
"Hopefully one day, with the voice of our community, the night life and entertainment atmosphere in St. George may change," DeVivo said.
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