The number of people who have joined or applied to join the online cafe of a controversial nudist club in North Chungcheong Province has increased after a battle with local residents increased awareness of it.

A local media reported Thursday that at least 66 people joined the online cafe for the naturists’ club this week, with 12 more waiting to be accepted. 

As of Thursday, the online community has 239 registered members and daily visits hover at 1,500. A post with photos of the now-infamous hillside resort, open only to those paying an annual membership fee of 240,000 won ($213), has at least 2,100 comments. 

The stripped-down private nudist club came into spotlight after residents of a village, about 5 kilometers away, staged a protest calling for its permanent closure. 

The club’s leader, under the username Nadaero, introduces the online cafe as “just a social gathering of people who share similar interests.”

Public nudity is illegal here, but naturists are free to gather in their birthday suits at private places.

The facility in Jecheon is facing crackdown, as the Health Ministry said Thursday that it would suspend operations of the mansion, on the basis that it is an unregistered guest accommodation facility. The decision will be delivered to the resort operator next week, the ministry said. By law, operators of hotels and other accommodation facilities are required to register with the government. 

The facility was registered as a farmhouse lodge when it first opened in 2009, but had its operation suspended two years later due to fierce protest from villagers. 

By Kim Da-sol (ddd@heraldcorp.com)