Youth club distributes controversial flyers

JOEL DAVIDSON/Frontiersman reporter

MAT-SU -- A flyer from Club Xstatic has made its way into Mat-Su schools, unsettling school administrators and principals.

The flyer advertises shuttle rides to the youth dance club. For $10, youth between the ages of 11 and 20 years old can be picked up at Palmer High School or Brett Memorial Ice Rink on Fridays at 6:30 p.m. and shuttled out to the club at Mile 52 Parks Hwy. They are then dropped back off at the same locations at 11:30 p.m.

Kim Floyd, information specialist for the Mat-Su Borough School District, said distribution of flyers has not been approved by the district. Floyd said the district tried to contact Club Xstatic to ask its operators to cease using students to distribute the flyers on school grounds. So far, Floyd said the club operators have not returned the district's messages.

"We sent out a notice to middle and high school principals that we have not approved the distribution of these flyers," Floyd said, "and we encourage parents to check out that situation before allowing their child to participate."

Floyd said she was concerned that parents may be led to think the school district supports Club Xstatic.

"We are not approving this flyer and parents need to be vigilant," she said. "We're not saying it's bad, but it is just not a school-sponsored event."

Club Xstatic is a smoke-, alcohol- and drug-free club that advertises itself online as a "safe high energy place for teens." The club opens Fridays at 7 p.m., providing dance music, pool tables and nonalcoholic drinks. At 11 p.m., everyone under 15 years old is required to leave, while the club remains open until 3 a.m. for people between the ages of 15 to 20.

Laurie Flanders, the club's general manager, also manages Borealis Beach Club, an adult entertainment club three miles down the highway that is owned by B & S Ventures Inc. -- the same company that owns Club Xstatic.

Flanders said the youth club was not trying to violate school district policy when it gave kids flyers to distribute to their school-age friends. Flanders also maintained that the club never received messages from the school district asking it to stop distributing flyers.

"We wouldn't do this if we thought there were problems," Flanders said. "There's a lot of kids who get the flyers at the club. We had kids asking for flyers to give to their friends."

Flanders said the club offers free admission to kids who distribute the flyers and she said club employees approached personnel at school offices at Teeland, Colony and Wasilla middle schools, asking them to post the flyers on school bulletin boards.

Floyd said she has not heard of anyone asking the school district to post Club Xstatic flyers, and principals at both Colony and Wasilla middle schools said they have no knowledge of anyone asking to post the flyers.

"Nobody from there came into our school and asked to put up a flyer," said Colony Middle School Principal John Miller. "They wouldn't be allowed to put it up -- I don't think it is appropriate for schools."

The first bus shuttle rides to the club were offered Friday, Dec. 10. Flanders said no one showed up, but she hopes word of the rides will soon spread. Flanders said the club offered the rides because the location of the club is farther away than some people care to drive.

"We just decided to give the kids an option to come because some parents don't want to drive that far," Flanders said.

The club provides a shuttle by renting two buses and drivers from First Student, the same company that provides transportation for the Mat-Su Borough School District.

While the district does not approve of the flyers, it did give the bus company permission to use school property as a pick-up and drop-off point for the shuttle rides.

According to Flanders, roughly 200 youth attend on a typical Friday night. The club features a $30,000 sound system, live DJ, black lights and up-to-date art work.

"This is a very nice club," Flanders said. "A lot of clubs in the state are not this nice."

Flanders said all youth must pass security before entering the club, which doesn't allow lighters or cigarettes indoors. Once inside the club, 11- to 15-year-olds cannot leave and re-enter without paying a cover charge. It's a policy to keep kids out of trouble.

The club also has an open-door policy for parents, allowing them to check out the environment.

"We have nothing to hide," Flanders said. "There's a lot of kids who have nothing to do up here and when they come here they have fun. If the boys and girls are getting a little too friendly, we use a big Super-Soaker and wet them down."

While remaining neutral on the club itself, Floyd said the district may have to look at the way school-sponsored flyers are identified in the future in order to avoid the confusion over school-sanctioned versus non-school-sanctioned events.

Teeland Middle School Principal Amy Spargo said she thinks Club Xstatic should know better than to encourage students to advertise their business in schools.

"We certainly don't use students to promote advertisements for business," Spargo said. "The kids said they were approached to distribute the flyers and they said they didn't know it was not allowed, but it's not up to them to know -- that's up to the adults and businesses to know."

Contact Joel Davidson at joel.davidson@frontiersman.com.