In St. Andrews, 1.25 Strip Clubs, Sex Toy Shops Per Sq. Mile, 2.1 Churches

Visit St. Andrews and one of the first things locals tell you is about the booming adult entertainment industry in the area.  From lingere to sex toys to strippers, the roughly 6.4-square-mile area is dense in the underbelly of nighttime clubbing.

Patch found eight listed strip clubs and adult stores, and 14 churches in the area by searching through online listings, driving the area and looking through past news stories. 

That’s roughly one adult venue for every 2,418 people over the age of 18.

A list of churches can be found in our directory.

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So how does this compare to other cities?

In Las Vegas, there are roughly 50 strip clubs in the 4.2 mile stretch of The Strip, no pun intended.

However, in the far more conservative Salt Lake City, there are about six for a 110-square-mile area.

Churches almost double the number of adult venues in St. Andrews, but does this reduce crime?
A post from the Southern Baptist Convention states that churches actively decrease the number of crimes in an area.

“Church attendance has also been associated with decreased levels of assault, burglary, and larceny, and religiosity promotes decreased levels of violent crime both at the individual and the state level.”

But can one church balance out about half a strip club? Or moreover, can one strip club negate the work of two churches? 

They could always take a cue from this group, JC’s Girls Girls Girls, and start a ministry for those working in adult entertainment.

Strip clubs have long been thought of as hot spots for crimes—remember the shooting that left one woman without workers’ comp? This was backed by a story earlier this year when a club burned down and the sheriff spoke out against it's reopening. 

 The State noted that deputies were dispatched to 3722 River Drive (then the Crush) more than 170 times in a two-year span. This lead officials to request the club to shut down, though now it appears to have reopened under another name. 

In the past, legislation has moved to relocate some of these clubs from areas near schools. 

Patch wants to hear from you: Do you mind the adult entertainment in St. Andrews? Do you utilize it? Tell us in the comments.