New York Times Imagines Ludlow Manor Being “Swallowed Back Into the Earth”

WHEREAS, 93 Ludlow St. Inc., is seeking the alteration of the full on‐premise liquor license for its premise located at 93 Ludlow Street a/k/a 95 Delancey Street, to wit extending the service of alcohol to the second floor and roof top of said location; and

WHEREAS, Community Board #3 had previously conditionally approved a full on‐premise liquor license for the ground floor of this location to operate as a tapas‐style restaurant with stipulations which would become conditions of its license to 1) operate as a full‐service European Spanish tapas restaurant, serving food to within one (1) hour of closing, 2) have hours of operation from 2:00 P.M. to 4:00 A.M. all days, 3) close its doors and windows at 10:00 P.M. every night, 4) play ambient background music, consisting of recorded music only, and will not have live music, DJs, promoted events, scheduled performances or any event at which a cover fee will be charged; and

WHEREAS, the proposed method of operation of the second floor would be as a space dedicated to private parties, with a certificate of occupancy of one hundred nine (109) people in six hundred sixty‐eight (668) square feet, a seventeen (17) foot bar and DJs; and

WHEREAS, the proposed method of operation of the third floor rooftop would be as a “loungy garden,” enclosed by glass walls and ceiling with retractable panels, with a certificate of occupancy of one hundred ninety‐seven (197) people in twenty‐three hundred sixty‐six (2,366) square feet, a twenty‐seven (27) foot bar and recorded background music; and

WHEREAS, this applicant had previously appeared in September and October of 2011 with this proposed alteration application but withdrew its application after the community board expressed concern that it had failed to devise traffic or security plans for a proposed business of this size or scale and given that Delancey Street has been recognized as the second worst street for pedestrian fatalities in New York City; and

WHEREAS, this premise, which encompasses the entire building located at 93 Ludlow Street a/k/a 95 Delancey Street and includes a second floor doing business as “The Casino” and its roof top, has now been operating since October 31, 2011, with the business name of Ludlow Manor, and an advertised square footage of between six thousand (6,000) and nine thousand (9,000) square feet; and

WHEREAS, this applicant has conceded that it has been serving alcohol on its second floor and roof top since its opening in October of 2011, although it has been approved for a license for alcohol service on the ground floor only and has been granted special events permits by the SLA for December 8, 2011, through December 10, 2011, only; and

WHEREAS, although the applicant stated that it believed that it could serve alcohol on the ground floor to patrons who could then carry it to the second floor and roof top, it is difficult for this community board to believe the applicant had misunderstood relevant New York State Alcohol Beverage and Control law given its history of operating similar venues in this community board and in Brooklyn, and given that a member of Community Board #3 and a member of Community Board #4 separately attended functions at this location and were served on its roof top; and

WHEREAS, although the applicant stated that it had private events on its roof top each night from December 8, 2011, through December 10, 2011, it is the belief of this community that the applicant sought to obtain such special events permits to circumvent the process of applying for the licensing of the second floor and roof top and has utilized said permits to conduct regular business rather than special events; and

WHEREAS, Community Board #3 is concerned that individuals named Luc Carl and Georgie Seville are undisclosed principals as they have been identified or have identified themselves as backers and partners in New York Post and Wall Street Journal articles about this location, even though both appeared before Community Board #3 and the attorney for the applicant represented that they are managers only; and

WHEREAS, this operation is inconsistent from the method of operation stated in its application to Community Board #3 that it would have recorded background music only and DJs on the second floor for private parties and not have live music, scheduled performances or events at which a cover fee would be charged in that it is advertising that it will have revolving DJs on its roof top (see New York Post article attached hereto) and has scheduled DJs and musicians at it premise and has charged a cover fee for at least one of said scheduled events (see printout of its Facebook page attached hereto); and

WHEREAS, although the applicant has been approved by the SLA to operate a tapas style restaurant with a full on‐premise liquor license on the ground floor of the premise, this dining space is the only component of this proposed large scale business which is not yet open, as conceded by the applicant and despite its request that the SLA expedite approval of the full on‐premise liquor license for the ground floor so that it could open and pay its rent; and

THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that Community Board #3 believe that for the foregoing reasons, this applicant is not a good risk for compliance with applicable New York State Alcohol Beverage and Control Law and now moves to deny the alteration of the full on‐ premise liquor license for 93 Ludlow St. Inc., doing business as Ludlow Manor, for the premise located at 93 Ludlow Street a/k/a 95 Delancey Street, to wit extending its full on‐ premise liquor license to its second floor and roof top.