ST. LOUIS – from www.stltoday.com – Owners of an adult-themed store that opened in Pevely against city leaders’ objections have filed a civil complaint in federal court asking a judge to force the city to grant it a business license.

Pure Pleasure Boutique has been locked in a dispute with the city since it was denied a business license in November, with officials opposed to having an adult store in a building classified for commercial use. Adult stores are only allowed in industrial zones in Pevely.

Owners of the store have quibbled with the city over the definition of “adult store,” saying their shop in Pevely doesn’t cross the line.

The family-owned boutique, which offers lotions, lubes, lingerie items and lightweight toys, opened anyway on Dec. 2, ringing in $35 in first-day sales. Don Kleinhans, his father, Don Kleinhans Sr,. and brother, Jim Kleinhans, own the store at 8600 Daniel Dunklin Boulevard, along with Pure Pleasure Supercenters in St. Louis, St. Charles and Crystal City.

When Pevely’s mayor and aldermen made sudden changes to the ordinance governing adult stores at the end of December, Don Kleinhans warned officials that they were “setting themselves up for a federal lawsuit.”

The complaint was filed Tuesday by 2302 N. Truman Entertainment, the Florida-based limited liability company that the family listed in applying to the city for the store. In addition to an order for the business license, the company is also seeking an unspecified amount of damages it claims the store has suffered.