By Julie Shapiro
DNAinfo Reporter/Producer
FINANCIAL DISTRICT — Now here’s something to bark about: Fetch Club, a much-anticipated spa and nightclub for dogs, is opening next month in the Financial District.
The 13,000-square-foot club at 85 South Street will offer luxury amenities for dogs ranging from home-cooked meals to an infrared sauna for detoxing.
“City dogs need exercise and entertainment,” said Peter Balestrieri, 52, a longtime Seaport resident who is opening Fetch Club with his girlfriend Janna Lee and their three dogs. “We wanted to bring a little bit of Los Angeles with a New York edge.”
The centerpiece of the club is a 3,000-square-foot indoor dog park, carpeted in artificial turf that curves over built-in mounds. When the dogs get tired of trotting after tennis balls fired by a machine, they can splash in a waterfall or settle down for a massage.
Dogs will also have access to treadmills, agility trainers and mineral-infused water. Those with sensitive skin can take a special bath with micro-bubbles that are smaller than their pores.
“It’s going to be kind of like a human health spa,” Balestrieri said as he gave DNAinfo a tour of the unfinished space this week.
After dark, the spa will convert to a members-only nightclub. Low-key pooches can curl up on a cushion and watch a dog-themed film, like “101 Dalmatians,” while the friskier set can sip Bark Vineyards’ Sauvignon Bark or Pinot Leasheo and “dance the night away,” Balestrieri said.
Membership costs $300, plus a la carte fees for services. Fetch Club is offering a 30 percent membership discount through the end of July.
The ground floor of the club, including the dog run, spa and upscale boutique, will open in August, Balestrieri said. He plans to eventually open additional space on the lower level.
Human residents of the club’s South Street building have expressed concerns about the legality of boarding dogs in a residential neighborhood, and the Department of Buildings briefly stopped work on the project in the spring, the New York Post reported.
Although kennels are not permitted under the neighborhood's current zoning, Fetch Club is grandfathered under prior zoning regulations and will be allowed to board dogs overnight, a Buildings Department spokeswoman said.
Balestrieri said the nightclub would close at midnight.
Residents were worried about noise from the barking dogs, so Balestrieri spent an additional $50,000 installing 8 inches of soundproofing in the ceiling, the Post reported.
Balestrieri also wants to keep dog odors from overtaking the club and the rest of the building, so he invested in industrial-strength filters and air purifiers.
“We’re really concerned about air quality,” Balestrieri said. “Our goal is to have it smelling like your home.”
