LONG ISLAND CITY — A longtime Irish pub in Long Island City has closed its doors and is headed to a new location, as its former building is set to be razed to make way for a pair of high-rise apartment towers.
The Shannon Pot is located on the corner of Davis Street and Jackson Avenue, the same block of warehouses that graffiti collective 5Pointz previously called home. The owners of the properties are planning to demolish the buildings to make way for luxury apartments.
The bar closed Friday, as first reported by the The Court Square Blog.
The bar's owner, who identified herself as Maureen, said they are planning to re-open in the coming weeks in a new location a few blocks away, at 21-59 44th Dr. The bar had been at the Davis Street site for 14 years, she said.
The buildings on the block are set to be razed in the coming months, according to property owner Jerry Wolkoff of G&M Realty, who said they are hoping to begin demolition in February. He said the few residential tenants that remain are scheduled to move out by Feb. 1st.
Wolkoff wants to develop two high-rise towers at the site, measuring 47 and 41 stories tall and containing around a thousand apartments. His plan drew fierce opposition from critics, and 5Pointz artists filed a lawsuit against him in October in an attempt to preserve the artwork and buildings.
A judge declined to block demolition of the site in November. Wolkoff then whitewashed most of the art on the buildings' facades overnight, a move that angered artists and 5Pointz fans.
Wolkoff has insisted that there will be a place for graffiti art at the new development, which is planned to include artists' studios and "art walls" for taggers.
