HELL'S KITCHEN — Traffic has come to a halt.
Traffic, a popular Ninth Avenue bar, abruptly closed its doors last week, after a city marshal ordered it shuttered indefinitely on behalf of its landlord, records show.
According to documents posted on Traffic's door, the bar at 701 Ninth Ave. was seized by John Villanueva, a city marshal, on Jan. 28 on behalf of its landlord, Woodland Realty Associates LLC. The reason for the seizure, first reported by Hell's Kitsch, was not immediately clear.
Both the bar's owner, Michael O'Neil, and Woodland Realty Associates did not respond to requests for comment.
Traffic, which had been planning to host the first stop in a Super Bowl pub crawl, has a troubled past in the neighborhood. Neighbors and Community Board 4 slammed it for hosting loud events and keeping open its large, garage-style doors and blasting music in the summertime.
Recently, the bar was the target of several lawsuits, including a case Con Edison brought in December to seize the bar's electric meter, because the bar's owner was denying the utility access, according to court records.