GRAMERCY — The owner of a troubled Gramercy nightclub wept in the street as officers broke up a large gathering packed with underage drinkers last month — a fracas that could be the final nail in the coffin for the embattled lounge, according to the head of the local precinct.
Police issued seven summonses for underage drinking and arrested one man for resisting arrest in the wee hours of Feb. 28 after revelers spilled out of Visana, a lounge at 321 First Ave., between East 18th and East 19th streets, according to Deputy Inspector Brendan Timoney, commanding officer of the 13th Precinct.
David Jaffee — Visana’s owner, a former club promoter and controversial Airbnb “slumlord” who was once labeled one of New York’s “10 most hated people in New York nightlife” — was present during the debacle and broke down outside the lounge as officers cleared the crowd, according to Timoney.
“He was crying out in the street the night that it happened,” Timoney said. “He was crying I think because he got caught.”
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The trouble began just after 12 a.m., when a crowd of boisterous partiers began gathering outside Visana, which is located speakeasy-style in the back of a pizza joint.
Neighbor Corey Kaup shot a video of the ruckus that night from his window, showing the crowd growing to several dozen young people, hooting, hollering, and squealing with glee as they wait in line or just mill about outside the lounge.
After neighbors notified police about the disturbance, officers showed up in force at roughly 1:15 a.m. and began clearing the sidewalk (police can be seen in the video arriving on the scene at the 3:45 minute mark), according to neighbors, Timoney, and Kaup’s footage.
Visana Lounge melee Feb. 28th 2016 from Corey D. Kaup on Vimeo.
While police were moving the youngsters along, one man, Matthew Jacoby, defied an officer’s order to get out of the street and stand on the sidewalk, according to a police spokeswoman.
Jacoby, 22, proceeded to push an officer and tried to tuck his arms to avoid being handcuffed, according to a police report.
Prosecutors charged Jacoby with resisting arrest, obstructing governmental administration, and disorderly conduct, and a judge released him without bail pending a May 5 court date, records show.
It only took about 15 minutes for police to get the block quiet, according to neighbor Kostas Kaimakliotis, who said many of the partiers appeared extremely young.
“I saw a lot of young kids, and they were really drunk," Kaimakliotis said.
Neighbors of Visana have repeatedly complained to police about loud loiterers about outside the lounge, and thumping bass keeping them up until all hours of the night, since the place opened in the fall.
Calling the Feb. 28 incident the “last straw,” Timoney said he has spoken with the State Liquor Authority, and noted the agency has scheduled a disciplinary hearing against Visana.
The SLA confirmed that Visana currently faces charges of 12 individual violations, including being a drain on police resources, hiring unlicensed security guards and violating noise regulations, according to an SLA spokesman.
The hearing for those charges is set for March 22, the spokesman added.
“We are on top of it and we are moving forward,” Timoney said at a 13th Precinct Community Council meeting on Tuesday night.
The incident also comes just two weeks after Community Board 6 recommended that the SLA reject Visana's application for a new liquor license, citing the SLA violations and a history of quality of life issues, according to a CB6 resolution.
In a previous interview with DNAinfo New York, Jaffee said he had taken steps to appease his neighbors, dropping about $5,000 on soundproofing equipment and showing up to several community council meetings to respond to complaints. But despite these gestures, problems with overattended parties and crowds on the sidewalk persisted, Kaup and other neighbors said.
Jaffee was not present at Tuesday’s Community Council meeting and did not respond to requests for comment.
