Strip club claims it paid Atlantic Beach millions to keep operating
.JPG "Town leaders are considering the development of a 21-story hotel with 168 rooms and an accompanying multi-level parking garage along the ocean front in Atlantic Beach, S.C. January 24, 2023.")
An Atlantic Beach strip club is claiming it has paid the town more than $2 million in the past 10 years to stay operational.
The claims were made in a lawsuit filed Sept. 8, 2025, against the town and follows a proposed ordinance last month that would limit sexually oriented businesses — a move the strip club says could “destroy” it.
Thee Dollhouse, an “adult cabaret” located at 3001 Highway 17 S., has been in operation for more than three decades at its current location. The club, formerly known as The Crazy Horse, claims it has paid the town over $2 million since 2016 in “excessive” business licensing fees, and that the owners of the club and its land — Dog Leg Right, LLC and Backbay Group LLC — are collectively the town’s biggest taxpayer.
The hefty licensing fees were paid with the understanding that it would allow the club to continue its current business model within the town, according to the lawsuit. This claim was “intended to deceive” the club’s owners, the lawsuit continues.
Now, a town ordinance that passed a first reading on Aug. 25 would “destroy” its business model, the lawsuit claims. It is unclear what the proposed ordinance says.
Atlantic Beach Town Manager Adrian Jones did not respond to requests to discuss the ordinance on Tuesday.
The owners of Thee Dollhouse had attempted to reach a zoning agreement with the town that would “clarify the operating parameters” of the business within the town since 2023, the lawsuit claims. But instead of proceeding with the club’s rezoning request, the town passed a Sexually Oriented Business Operating Ordinance.
William Monckton, one of the attorneys representing Thee Dollhouse in the case, said that the legal team has no comments on the matter at this time.
The lawsuit, which was filed on Monday in Horry County, claims that the town adopted the ordinance with “legally insufficient notice” and used the legal advice of an attorney not licensed to practice in the state.
The ordinance would ruin the club’s investments in its business, including more than $6 million in improvements to the property and the millions in “constitutionally excessive” licensing fees, the lawsuit says.
The club is asking that the $2 million be returned to the business owners, with interest.
The town’s budget for the 2024 fiscal year was just over $1 million, and the town generated just over $1.5 million in revenue, according to online records. The lawsuit claims that Thee Dollhouse paid the town $321,390 that year.
The club also claims that the town exercised police intimidation at the business by parking police vehicles nearby and discouraging customers from entering in various ways. Police also conducted searches of vehicles and ran license plates of staff vehicles without probable cause, according to the lawsuit.
