One month after the town of James Island decided that the last dance for local bars would be two hours past the stroke of midnight, one popular nightclub has closed its doors and plans to sue.

ALAN HAWES/STAFF Ron Brandon, The Reef owner, stands outside his club that closed after the town of James Island passed a 2 a.m. bar closing law.

The Reef, a James Island bar, closed Saturday night. It is adding the town to its lawsuit against Charleston County for both governments' passage of 2 a.m. bar closing ordinances, owner Ron Brandon said.

The lawsuit claims the 2 a.m. ordinance amounts to an illegal taking, since the zoning change lowered the business' value, he said.

Brandon said he is seeking compensation for the club's loss in value, estimated at more than $500,000. Also, the ultimate amount would include the 15 years remaining on the lease at the Folly Road site, and lost income, he said.

"That's kind of a starting point," Brandon said.

Brandon said business at The Reef has declined 75 percent since James Island's bar-closing ordinance took effect April 16.

Tucked in a plaza on Folly Road, The Reef had hoped to capitalize on late-night bar traffic that had existed in downtown Charleston before the city passed the first 2 a.m. closing law. Mount Pleasant and Charleston County passed similar laws.

Brandon had hoped that James Island would allow him to remain open late. "We're in a very commercial area. There are no houses or neighborhoods around it. It's on the main drag. We don't think there will be any problems," he said in December.

James Island Mayor Mary Clark said the town was concerned about a possible increase in late-night drinkers on the island. Town Council passed its own 2 a.m. law by a 3-1 vote.

"Once the county passed the ordinance, this town had no choice," Clark said, adding that the town was concerned about the additional demand that would be placed on sheriff's deputies.

"I'd like to know why they abruptly changed their minds," Brandon said.

On Tuesday, the marquee outside The Reef read "Closed For Sale, Thanks Mayor Clark."

"He's the only one that's closed. I'm at a loss as to why he closed when nobody else did," Clark said.

Ashley Thompson, owner of Island Grill and Bar on James Island, admittedly a smaller establishment than The Reef, said that it will stay open.

"We have lost a lot of revenue because of it, but we will not close," Thompson said.Thompson said he believes The Reef had to close because it was no longer getting the late-night business it thrived on. A group of loyal patrons are keeping Island Grill and Bar in operation, she said.

Town attorney Michael Socha said he doesn't believe there was any illegal taking because that involves denying an owner all economic use of his property.

"Denying partial use of it for three hours a day does not equal 'all' by any means," he said.

Even if Brandon wins the suit, the town has no money to give, Socha said. The town receives some state money given to all municipalities and recently got about $3,000 from local option sales tax money.

"He might get some James Island T-shirts and a chair," Socha said.

Brandon said his suit -- which is separate from a legal challenge other bar owners are waging against the city of Charleston's 2 a.m. law -- also claims that the sheriff's office exaggerated the number of sheriff's calls at The Reef.

"We are not aware of any problems, and we've never been aware of any problems," he said, adding that the sheriff's office has not provided a breakdown of those calls despite repeated requests.

"We did receive (the subpoena)," said Capt. Dana Valentine, sheriff's office spokeswoman. "There have been calls for (police) service at his business as well as other businesses in that area."

Sheriff's office attorney Tom Lynn and Charleston County attorney Joseph Dawson are coordinating a response, she said.

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