City politicians are being told they need to slam the door, fast, on a strip club and massage parlour looming for east London.

But it may already be too late.

A business has applied to open the adult entertainment businesses on the site of the former Famous Flesh Gordon’s at 2190 Dundas St. E.

Renovations are taking place on what they hope will be a strip club with a body rub parlour, Orest Katolyk, the city’s bylaw enforcement officer, told a city council committee Tuesday.

When the work passes inspection, the city can’t deny the adult entertainment application. So, if politicians want to pull the licence for that site, they must do it now, he told the community and protective services committee.

But an advertised public meeting has to be held before a licence can be pulled. Politicians voted to hold it Aug. 28.

“If they pass inspections (before the end of August) we shall issue a licence. There is risk in this timing,” Katolyk told the politicians. “It’s a race against time, in this case.”

The owner of the property, George Nikopoulos, declined comment except to say it will be ready for inspection soon and he feels confident the adult entertainment business will open before the end of August.

There are three strip bars now in the city and four licences. Politicians would have to vote to pull that fourth licence in what was the Flesh Gordon’s site, to quash the strip bar.

There would have to be “a council decision to remove the business licence to this location,” said Katolyk.

“I caution council because we have two applications. Renovations are underway. If we have a request to inspect for final approval, it is our duty to inspect and if it passes, a licence will be issued.”

Politicians went behind closed doors to get a legal opinion on the issue.

Coun. Bill Armstrong, representing the east London community, railed against the strip bar, saying his constituents strongly oppose it due to rowdy behaviour from the bar in the past.

There are petitions with more than 500 signatures opposing it, he said.

“There is absolutely no interest in my community in seeing this establishment reopen,” he said. “This is a cloud in the community we need cleaned up.”

Famous Flesh Gordon’s closed in 2015. In December 2016, a new application for a adult live entertainment parlour was submitted by Paris Clubs Corp. In January, staff contacted the applicant to schedule inspections and were advised renovations are being done on the site.

The committee received a letter from nearby Lynn’s Bakery and Deli, urging the club not be allowed.

“Loss of business for us is inevitable, and has become a source of worry,” said Roy O’Connor of the bakery.

The issues for the bakery include, “watching patrons of the strip club urinating outside on our walls during, and after business hours, sweeping up used condoms and drug paraphernalia including needles, and on occasion, sweeping up used underwear and human feces.”