By Tara Kyle
DNAinfo Reporter/Producer
HELL'S KITCHEN — Pink Elephant nightclub and the Yotel hotel chain had their liquor license bids rebuffed Wednesday night by Community Board 4.
Upscale nightclub Pink Elephant wanted to reopen in West Chelsea and promised to be a good neighbor by reducing capacity and offering to clean the sidewalk on West 28th Street every night after closing. Yotel, a European chain known for Japanese-style pod rooms, ran into opposition because they wanted to allow drinking on their terrace late into the night.
Pink Elephant foes turned up to the Community Board meeting with their stickers that said "Stop Pink Elephant." The board voted to reject the club's application to the State Liquor Authority by a close margin of 18-14.
"We all know what it was like 10 years ago — I remember what it was like to see people coming up 28th Street as late as 6:30 a.m," said committee member Brett Firfer, who voted against the nightclub. "I've got to wonder why anybody would like to get in a time machine instead of moving forward."
Pink Elephant, which had received support from CB4's liquor license committee, wanted to open in the space once home to the M2 Ultra Lounge, which was shut down amid accusations of violence, drug use and illegal cigarette sales, and its owners offered to drop its capacity at the new club to 2,300, from 3,000.
They vacated their old West 27th Street home in fall 2009 because they feared the exploits of troubled neighboring clubs would harm their brand.
In that void, the block today remains a desolate place, marked by barbed wire, barren construction sites, a guard dog attack sign and, next door to the proposed Pink Elephant site, Scores gentlemen's club. But a growing number of galleries and small businesses have moved in. Luxury residential developments, including the soon to open 540 W. 28th St., are also popping up.
The conflicting interests are creating new challenges for nightclub owners in this traditionally nightlife-heavy neighborhood, which is now zoned for mixed-use development.
"The city always had in mind that this would be the club area," said member Edward Kirkland. "This is essentially a vector of unresolved bad zoning."
Yotel wants to serve alcohol to hotel guests and the public on its fourth floor terrace until 1:30 a.m. on weekends.
That closing time, which operations director Nigel Buchanan agreed to after initially requesting a 3 a.m. shutdown, was negotiated on the basis of a detailed soundproofing plan and support from tenant association leaders at the neighboring Manhattan Plaza residential complex.
But Wednesday night, CB4 only agreed to support Yotel's liquor license application if they close at 11 p.m. on the weekends.
Both Pink Elephant and Yotel will have an opportunity to plead their cases before the State Liquor Authority, which takes community board recommendations into consideration but isn't bound by them.
