From Church to Nightclub (Limelight, Avalon), Now a Mall?

All worship at the altar of...H&M? The church at Sixth Avenue and West 20th that was once the infamous Limelight nightclub (and not so famous Avalon) may be turned into retail space, according to Braden Keil in today's Post. Apparently, landlord Ben Ashkenazy doesn't want to deal with another nightclub, especially in the wake of the recent crackdown and trouble securing liquor licenses.

Broker Frank Terzulli of Winnick Realty tells the Post, "He's going to cut it up for retail tenants and a restaurant with patio seating." Ooh, patio seating! H&M is interested in the space ("triple-height ceilings and mezzanine levels"), but no deals have been signed.

The church was designed in "rustic Gothic Revival style." Little did those Episcopalians know that it would be the famous Peter Gatien-owned Limelight in the 1980s and 1990s.

Source: http://www.gothamist.com/...rch_to.php

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[Edited 1/28/07 9:57am]

Good i always hated that place !!!

Fuq Gatien. He's a bastard. I hope that any venture he begins turns to rot.

Sorry to see the Limelight die but it died a long time ago; a club in a church is an inspired idea.

How was the Limelight?

I never was there when it was Gatien's Limelight.

I'm always hearing some older drug addiclubbers reminisce about it in the 80s and 90s.

Was it really worthy of all the hype?

Gatien was a complete fuckhead to work for, he owned the sound factory bar as well, and sometimes people didnt get paid, Keoki didnt get paid and Loca didnt get paid, so everyone quit dj'ing there since Angel's mysterious death.

IAintTheOne said:

Would you say that Angel Melendez's death signalled the final end of the cavernous "megaclub" in NYC or did you think it was other factors?

Also, Angel's death isn't really a mystery he was murdered by Michael Alig and Freeze over a bad drug debt.

There's a book published that tells the story surrounding Angel's murder and the rise and fall of the Club Kids called Disco Bloodbath by James St. James.

The scene these days out here is mostly on life support because the NYPD these days are not having any of it. So many crackdowns have happened in the last few years. 2006 alone was a MUTHA. Clubs just being closed for monnnthsss. It just kills "nites."

The owner of Avalon [old "Limelight"] didn't even want to risk opening another club night because the business is fuckin' shady.

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[Edited 1/28/07 8:10am]

i feel sorry for the kids growing up these days...Mayor Willie Brown cracked down on the big clubs in SF...now all we have these disney-fied clubs were the out of towners hang out...and small dives for the faithful.

oh well...at least i have my memories.

sosgemini said:

I wouldn't feel too sorry.

Kids in New York are still clubbing, but it's much, much different. The scene is not about "megaclubs" and huge discos anymore because it's almost like wearing a neon jumpsuit to a funeral, you just stand out in a city that's hellbent on enforcing really shady cabaret laws. And the drug game pretty much goes hand in hand with a lot of megaclubs. Personally, I'm not trying to get caught up in that.

I love dance music, but I'm not a drug addict. That's not a hand-in-hand thing for me like those heads who need to get high to get by on a dancefloor.

The scene shifts naturally every 5 years anyway. And I would name the spots that are the BUSINESS in NYC right now, but there's a lot of media folks in the org Music: Non-Prince section and I don't want blowing up the spot. lollll

Mara said:

well, i think we are talking about two totally different things here...im talking about the disneyfication of nightclubs. a perfect example, i went to Ruby Skies out here in SF a year or so back to see Ben Watt spin. I was shocked that folks were watching him as if it were a concert. People werent even really dancing...

a good dj is known for his/her music and not his/her personality...clubs used to be about good music, dancing and community...i would never step into a place that played a remixed madonna single or god forbid mariah carey or celine dion. now its the norm. i really think the crackdown on drug use and noise outside venues has limits what types of clubs run...now, maybe that's not the issue in NY but it is one in SF.

wow..a mall...,in a CHURCH...this should be interesting

Another NY spot set to disappear. The Limelight was definitely not one of my favorite spots but I dont want to see it become a freaking shopping center. There's a shopping strip just a few blocks from there anyway. Too bad they couldn't do something more with it but in NY if its not part of a franchise its a condo.

How exactly was the Limelight? Party Monster is one of my favorite movies, and the documentary on Michael Alig and the Club Kids was even more insane. Was it as debaucherous as everyone claims it was?? And what are the updates on alot of the clubkids(the ones that managed to survive)? I know Michael is in prison, James St. James is living in LA getting ready to release a new book, Richie Rich is a success thanx to Heatherette, and Ive heard some updates on Brooke Humphries and Jennytalia. But what about the rest? I'd imagine some of them are still fighting drug addictions.

My friend & I went there with our other friend who lived in NYC the first time we visited NYC, in 98 I think. I guess we were pretty clueless about the drug scene there--we're not into that. I remember there was some really bizarre "performance" art at some point in the evening, and I liked how each room had a different vibe; but overall I wasn't that impressed by my night of clubbing in New York.

Since moving to New York, I honestly haven't gone to the "clubs" (e.g. Lotus, Bungalow 8, whatever they are). It's too hard to get into the scene here. I prefer to go to smaller 'lounges' where people just happen to dance later on. Much less of a production.


I can't see the mini-mall thing happening though--NYC is kinda anti-mall. (Although there is Columbus Circle...) I hope it doesn't turn into a mini-mall. Manattan doesn't really need another H&M.

I used to go to Limelight on the industrial nights (Communion) in the 90s. Those nights were cool. There were also a few goth events there around the same time which worked naturally being in a church. It hasn't been the same for a long time however.