By Serena Solomon
DNAinfo Reporter/Producer
CHELSEA — Part of a plan to turn the notorious Limelight nightclub building, shuttered for two years, into a retail mall has been rejected by the Landmarks Preservation Commission.
Builders have been given approval to transform the interior of the landmarked Church of the Holy Communion, which housed the Limelight and its successor nightspot, Avalon, to house a three-floor boutique shopping market with up to 80 vendors.
But a proposal by operator of the Limelight Marketplace, fashion retailer Jack Menashe, to add signage to the exterior, as well as alterations to the courtyard and the roof, was rejected by the commission.
"Overall the committee were delighted that the church will be restored to the extent that the owners plan to," said comission spokeswoman Elisabeth de Bourbon.
De Bourbon said the commission has asked Menashe's team to reduce the signage and to ensure the courtyard is reconstructed using bluestone.
Many Chelsea residents still have bitter memories from the heyday of the nightclub that had a reputation as a drug den. Newspaper headlines tell the story of the exclusive but troubled nightspot: ecstasy overdoses, tax evasion charges against former operator Peter Gatien, underage drinking and loud music that continually angered neighbors.
Some community groups are not entirely happy with the mall proposal.
Jack Taylor, from the Drive to Protect the Ladies' Mile District, for example, bristles at recycling the name "Limelight."
"It amounts to a slap in the face of the neighborhood," Taylor told the LPC, "which suffered for years with the noise, drug dealing and unruly crowds associated with the notorious nightclub of that name."
The commission has to approve of alterations to exteriors of landmarked buildings. It was unclear when the Limelight Marketplace proposal will return to the commission.
Menashe did not return calls for comment.
