Peoria, Illinois- from www.pjstar.com – Usually, X-rated video stores flash plenty to gawk at.

But in proposing a makeover into a sports pub, Brown Bag Video has kept plans under close wraps. Monday, Peoria’s liquor commission unanimously approved a 4 a.m. liquor license for the venture, though the city doesn’t know exactly what’s involved.

Tuesday morning, I caught up with owner Dan Laud. He didn’t want to say too much, because there are a lot of details yet to finalize.

“It’s a 50-50 shot right now,” he says.

Still, this marks the real first step toward fulfilling promises made more than a decade ago by proponents of putting a minor-league ballpark Downtown. Build it, and they – pubs, eateries and other entertainment venues – will come. A mini-Wrigleyville was to spark an economic resurgence on the Near South Side.

The stadium opened in 2002, yet neighborhood commerce has been stagnant. The only nightlife remains the same as pre-ballpark: Brown Bag and a gay bar next door – not exactly the places to take the family or wow out-of-town clients.

During baseball season, if you get to the area before the park opens, there’s no place to visit within real walking distance. That would change with a switcheroo at Brown Bag, 801-803 SW Adams St. – catty-corner across Oak Street from the park entrance.

Though owner Laud is cautious about the possibilities of a sports bar, deputy liquor commissioner Eric Turner sounds supremely confident. Like Babe Ruth pointing to the bleachers and promising a World Series home run, he pledges that the new club will be open when the season starts in April.

Laud winces at that notion. It’s possible, but there’s still plenty to do.

First, the Peoria City Council has to take a final vote, slated for Jan. 25. But with the liquor commission totally on board, approval seems likely.

Then, Laud would have to hammer out final details with the prime mover behind the project. He won’t reveal the person’s identity. But he is a successful out-of-town businessman who is a friend of a Laud relative.

The businessman never has run a bar. But his girlfriend lives in Peoria, and he has seen the crowds at Chiefs games. He sees the entertainment void around the park and envisions a scene like the neighborhood pubs before and after Chicago Cubs and St. Louis Cardinals games.

The businessman approached Laud with the idea of revamping Brown Bag. Laud would continue to own the building, but he would not want to run a sports bar. Previously, he has operated taverns, including the one next door. But he doesn’t want to get into that end of the trade again. As bar proprietor, you have to be there when the customers are. For Laud – a 9-to-5er – that’d be too much work, too late at night.

“I don’t want to run a bar,” he says. “As a businessman, I like to be hands-on. And I don’t want on be working until 4 a.m. I’m too old.”

Brown Bag has been doing solid business for 20 years, 9 a.m. to midnight. The browsing fee is $2, redeemable with a purchase. The shop sells DVDs, magazine and sex aids. Or, you can pay to watch movies in video booths.

The Internet has taken away much of the lure of traditional porn-industry venues, such as men’s magazines. But Laud says Brown Bag still draws steady business. So, the move to a sports bar would have to mean more money in his pocket.

With a new pub, all the adult merchandise would vanish, and the booths would be converted to office space. That would leave 2,500 square feet for a tavern. The license would allow entertainment, but a bandstand would have to be small to fit in without eating up too much floor space.

The place is tidy but sparse, with yellowish walls all-around. So, remodeling would be in order. The investing businessman is a car buff who collects old gasoline pumps. He envisions an automobile motif.

As for food, Laud isn’t aiming high yet. He is thinking of a brief menu with just microwaveable fare and frozen pizzas.

If the idea pans out, Brown Bag will survive nonetheless. Peoria’s restrictive adult-use codes make relocating Brown Bag difficult within the city. But he says he could go to any of several nearby towns.

“I want to stay in the business,” he says.