Club 5 is now Closed

[SaturnMoon]

A Message from the owner of Club 5...

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

It is with a great deal of regret that I have to inform you all that we are ceasing operations at Club 5. Without going into too much detail, we were put in the position of having to submit a new application to the city for a variance/waiver of distance for serving alcohol within 1500 feet of the nearby church. Although this is normally routine, our landlord (Mike Shad), despite the fact that our lease dictates that our only use of the building is as a night club and allows us to serve alcohol (for the next 16 years, I might add), is refusing to sign the application, which is required by the city. We are therefore unable to continue serving alcohol and therefore unable to continue operating. Our lawsuit against the landlord (Mike Shad) remains and we are proceeding to trial in late July.

Nonetheless, we retain ownership of the liquor license and are reviewing our options, including a new location, and we'll keep you posted.

I would like to personally like to thank everyone who has supported the club over the past 18 months in its current incarnation. We depended on a regular, loyal clientele and we appreciate all of you who week-in and week-out shelled out your 10-15 bucks in support of both the club and EDM. I would also like to thank Wes Reed, the residents, sound and equipment providers, and, most of all, the countless local djs who unselfishly contributed their time and efforts to make each Saturday night special. We remain committed to contributing to the EDM scene at Ocean Club, The Atlantic (and possibly soon Square One), so we will see you soon. Thank you again for all your support.

~Bob Green

[bobliocatt]

Well it was known that this was coming when Shad purchased the building to convert it into lofts. I believe he has plans to replace Club 5 with an upscale restaurant.

Hopefully, the owners of Club 5 will be able to find a new location in downtown.

[asonj23]

I wonder if some of the other buisnesses will follow behind Club 5 to a new location. The club was a fairly big anchor in the 5 points. If buisnesses do start moving out I hope that there are plenty more willing to move in and support the revival Mike Shad is trying to start.

[bobliocatt]

Unfortunately Five Points is in the process of gentrification and yuppified. Its going to lose most of its local flavor in when this process is complete. The mom & pop businesses moving out will be replaced by chain outlets, such as Panera Bread, Starbucks and Moe's. However, this is a natural thing, so look for more affordable pedestrian friendly strips, like Main Street in Springfield, Edgewood in Murray Hill or Park & King in Riverside, to eventually take its place.

[jandar]

Boo Hiss to Mike Shad.

Club 5 was THE anchor in 5 Points for well over a decade. Look for most of the shops on that strip to move. Carribbean Connection will probably be the first, followed by others.

5 Points was a unique area, I fear what Mike Shad is trying to do.

[RiversideGator]

As someone who has been to Club 5 many times when younger and who lives in Riverside near 5 Points, I must say that I will not mourn its passing. I think that Club 5 was good for the neighborhood when it was more down on its heels, but now that it is a nicer place I feel that Club 5 is incompatible with the area. I am tired of cleaning up beer bottles and cigarettes from my yard and from having my cars vandalized on the street - this is not directly traceable to Club 5 but I am sure some of their patrons were involved in at least the littering. I also dont think gentrification of Riverside has been a bad thing from the perspective of a resident - now we have many more retail and dining options and more restored houses plus Publix instead of the old bars, slums and drug dealers.

On the other hand, I do understand that the owner of Club 5 has to make money, so I think a new location is the thing to do. I would encourage him to look at the old Winn-Dixie on McDuff which is close to Riverside but in an area that needs a lift or somewhere along Main Street in Springfield. In short, times change and so bar owners must respond to changing neighborhoods.

[RiversideGator]

By the way, 5 Points was not always the counter-culture headquarters that many seem to want to preserve. Not too long ago, it was a nice shopping district with stores like the Riverside Gown Shop and others where one could buy fine clothing and other items. As the neighborhood declined in the 60s and 70s, the rents declined and purveyors of various vices moved in. So, Shad's plans, which I support, are actually aimed at returning 5 Points to its original use. And, there will always be another place with low rents for these type businesses to move to, dont worry.

[richjagr]

Hopefully they can move into the 4am zone. This may end up being a good thing for both downtown development and Club 5 in the long run as Club 5 was just outside that zone from what I could tell.

Personally I would like to see a club at 101 BAY ST E (the Jaguar in the Cage building)

see:4am discussion

[La Florida]

How about move the club to the bay street area? This would be great because the club already has a good loyal following which would in turn give Bay street the boost it needs to becoming "the" entertainment spot. Just a thought.

[Urban_Legend]

Yes, I was thinking of "Club Bay", or something like that.

[DavePaulk]

The mom & pop businesses moving out will be replaced by chain outlets, such as Panera Bread, Starbucks and Moe's.

Lakelander you successfully made me cringe and smack the keyboard with that statement. I've never been a real five points patron, but anything is better than Starbucks/Panera. I'm proud to say i've never eaten at either on my own initiative.

[afh]

Lakelander you successfully made me cringe and smack the keyboard with that statement.  I've never been a real five points patron, but anything is better than Starbucks/Panera.  I'm proud to say i've never eaten at either on my own initiative.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I love Panera. I wish we had them out here in Phoenix. I'm having Panera withdrawl.

[Urban_Legend]

I'm having Starbucks withdrawal right now, lol.

Alas, I'm such an urban yuppie.....

[Urban_Legend]

Club 5 closing its doors today

Five Points nightclub can no longer serve alcohol; landlord plans to convert space

By ALISON TRINIDAD, The Times-Union

Club 5, the nightclub at the heart of Five Points, has closed.

The club's landlord, who has been trying since last year to evict Club 5 and convert its space into a restaurant or other commercial use, said the club would vacate the property today.

Club owner and operator Bob Green said the club could not renew its city-zoning exception to serve alcohol within 1,500 feet of a church because his landlord refused to sign the application.

"We are therefore unable to continue serving alcohol and therefore unable to continue operating," Green said.

Green said that the club still has its liquor license and may move to another location. The club's name, however, would not stay the same.

"I think Club 5 was synonymous with Five Points. I don't think it would work anywhere else," Green said.

He said the lawsuit the club filed against the landlord, seeking to stay on property, remains and will go to trial in late July.

Green also runs Square One in San Marco and The Atlantic and The Ocean Club in Jacksonville Beach.

Jack Shad, whose family owns the Five Points building, said renovations to the 8,000-square-foot space occupied by Club 5 will begin immediately. No new tenants have been approached due to the lawsuit, he said.

Known for attracting a younger, more alternative crowd, the nightclub arguably defined Five Points' most recent incarnation as a haven for the

artistic avant-garde in Jacksonville. It was one of the first clubs to bring leather fetish shows and foam showers to the city, and was notorious for its "Saturday Night Seduction" show in the late 1990s. As the Marquee Theatre from 2002 to 2003, it attracted live music acts like 2 Live Crew and Papa Roach.

Shad's family bought the building in August 2004 for $2 million with the intent of restoring its brick facade, covered in the 1970s with stucco, and converting the top two floors into loft apartments, the second floor to leased office space and the first floor to retail space.

"It has the potential to be an amazing space and be completely unique in Jacksonville," Shad said.

Shad has requested that the city allow a restaurant to occupy Club 5's old space, but added that the request is exploratory. He said a restaurant would be the most intensive use planned for the site, and that a permit would keep the developers' options open.

"We're not in the restaurant business. We're not in the nightclub business. We're in the restoration business," Shad said.

The Five Points Theatre is shown in the 1930s. The River City Playhouse occupied the building's theater section through the late 1980s, but a nightclub of one form or another has operated inside the space since 1991.

[RiversideGator]

As you can see, the old 5 Points Theater (as well as 5 Points in general) was once an elegant place which was defaced by Club 5 and/or the previous owners of the building. So, by returning the building to its original state (ie removing the vile stucco on the outside and hopefully restoring the interior) the Shads are actually engaged in historic preservation/restoration for which everyone should applaud them. This will become an asset for Jacksonville for years to come.

[bobliocatt]

I think that building was defaced prior to its years of becoming a nightclub. One of these recent articles stated that it operated as a theater all way until the 1980's.

Although pissed, and rightfully so, the owners of Club 5 should land on their feet. This situation is very similar to Hudson Books evicting the restaurants that were operating in the Furchgott's Building. Hopefully, they'll move downtown and take their patrons with them. It was a popular place and the downtown nightlife scene would get instant credibility and would benefit by having a popular club operation there.

Btw, does anyone know what the loft units in the old theater will go for?