Update: Traffic control cones were in place at Knotty Boddies late Tuesday afternoon, blocking cars from using the drive-through window of the bikini espresso stand. Walk-up customers still were being served at 6:30 p.m., the Bellevue Reporter observed.

The city today told Knotty Bodies “bikini espresso stand” to shut down or close its unauthorized drive-through operation, which violates the business’s building permit.

“Failure to comply compounds the problem,” said Bellevue development services director Mike Brennan. “We’re looking at aggressive actions now to make sure the issue is resolved.”

Brennan said the city issued a correction notice on Monday because of the drive-through operation, which the city says poses an immediate public-safety concern.

The site does not have adequate space for vehicles to queue up in a line, according to Brennan.

The city contacted Knotty Bodies Tuesday to suggest that it put barriers in place to prevent vehicles from pulling up to the stand, Brennan said.

Customers were still lining up at the booth in vehicles Tuesday afternoon.

Knotty Bodies is located in the parking lot of the Chevron gas station at Northeast Eighth Street and 164th Avenue Northeast.

An espresso stand without a drive-through would be considered an acceptable use of the same site, according to Brennan.

Bellevue Deputy Mayor Claudia Balducci said during Monday’s city council meeting that residents should shame Knotty Bodies customers by taking photos of the patrons and posting them on the Internet.

Balducci also said residents should boycott the Chevron gas station where the espresso stand is located.

“I’m very unhappy to have this in the community,” she said.

Brennan said the amount of time the city gives a business to correct building-permit violations depends on the nature of the circumstances. He said the city wants to act quickly in this case because the Knotty Bodies drive-through poses life-safety concerns.

Knotty Bodies opened Saturday without first obtaining a business license, although the owner has applied for one.

The espresso stand is also running without a certificate of occupation, due to certain structural problems – none of which threaten public safety, according to Brennan.

Many residents are concerned about the business because it puts scantily-clad women in close proximity to Crossroads Park, which is frequented by children.

Around 200 residents showed up Monday at the city council meeting. Nearly all of them expressed disapproval of the espresso stand.

The city council asked city staff to find ways of “aggressively” enforcing codes that pertain to Knotty Bodies. The council also asked staff to research further regulations that could restrict such businesses in the future.