A former strip club near the Wisconsin/Illinois border will soon become … something else.
The former Paradise Club in Appleton, Wis. — located across from the bustling Fox River Mall — closed its doors Dec. 2. Local commercial real estate developer Bob Gregorski purchased the building, which was listed by brokerage firm Micoley.com.
The question now is, what will the Paradise Club become? Gregorski isn’t saying yet. He has said that he will demolish the former strip club. But he hasn’t yet said what he will build in its place, only to say that it won’t be another strip club and that it would be something “more beneficial to the community.”
Before Gregorski tears down the building, though, he must first win approval from Appleton’s government for any new use of the site.
Gregorski paid $775,000 for the Paradise Club. The strip club had already fallen into foreclosure, with its owner, the Hassell Living Trust, having until the middle of January, 2014, to sell the property or give it up in a sheriff’s sale. The owners had originally agreed to sell the property in an online auction, run by Micoley.com, on Dec. 14 before Gregorski made his accepted offer.
Wade Micoley, president of Micoley.com, said that area residents will be thrilled to see the strip club go. Many had been hoping for a new use on the highly visible plot of land for years, he said.
“The property has been in the sights of many area developers for years,” Micoley said, in a written statement. “Properties of this size and location are hard to come by in the area.”
Green Bay’s Micoley.com is still auctioning off 138 properties in its Dec. 14 auction. These properties include taverns, a former motel and multi-family properties.
Micoley, like the rest of the residents of Appleton, will now wait to see what Gregorski brings to the site in 2014.
“We were very happy to expose the property and give a fair chance to all who were interested in purchasing it,” Micoley said. “Mr. Gregorski has a great reputation for adding quality developments to the area. We look forward to seeing what he will bring.”
