Carl, cohort Georgie Seville and the team from “The Delancey” returned to CB3’s SLA Committee for a third time in their ill-fated quest to extend their liquor permit at the “Ludlow Manor,” the triple-decker nightlife complex they opened in October. The panel voted 3-2 to reject their bid for liquor permits on the second and third floors (they received permission for a ground floor license earlier this year). The problem: board members were rather displeased that the club had apparently been serving alcohol on the roof-top bar in spite of the fact that the State Liquor Authority has not yet acted on a permanent license.
An attorney representing Ludlow Manor said the establishment had used “special events permits” to operate since opening on Halloween. He said the business has held private events on the upper floors, which he argued is lawful. Alex Militano, the committee chair, was incredulous. “You are using a catering permit to conduct regular business. These are not private parties,” she asserted. Militano said she had read numerous stories that made it very clear the club is open to the general public. The attorney said it was possible that customers had purchased drinks at the first-floor bar and then walked upstairs. “Sometimes people go up,” he explained.
Militano also grilled the applicants for failing to mention Luc Carl’s involvement in the project during two earlier hearings. Paperwork filed with the community board only lists one name: Tomas Dyskiewicz. But referencing news reports, Miitano said there is apparently “an additional principal in the business unknown to us.”
A November 2nd item on Page Six led off, “Luc Carl, ex of Lady Gaga, will open Ludlow Manor, a three-story Lower East Side bar later this month, with Georgie Seville.” A November 29th story in the Wall Street Journal reported that Carl co-owned Ludlow Manor. Carl, who was mostly quiet during the inquiry, spoke up to say. “The New York Post has been quoting me terribly for years.” The attorney said Carl is not an owner but a manager. If anyone is asserting Carl is a principal, he said, “it’s an erroneous statement.”
According to CB3 District Manager Susan Stetzer, the Liquor Authority mistakenly approved one of Ludlow Manor’s special permits but it was her understanding they would not sign off on any more temporary licenses. The operators had come back to the community board with a more detailed security plan addressing crowd control and Delancey Street pedestrian hazards. But most board members were in no mood to consider the new proposals.
Even Ariel Palitz, a bar owner who has defended the Ludlow Manor application, seemed dismayed (although she ultimately voted against CB3’s resolution rejecting the application). “I wish there had been more transparency and honesty and clarity from the beginning so all of this didn’t seem so shady,” she said.
Militano explained, “I can’t approve you because you are already operating against the law.” Another board member, David Conn, said, “there have been multiple misrepresentations to us. You are operating outside the rules.”
Ludlow Manor’s attorney pleaded with board members. He said the operators have proven themselves as responsible business owners on the Lower East Side. Members of the team explained that there had been problems with construction. It took seven months for Con Ed to turn on the gas, which explains why the ground floor restaurant is not yet operational. The lawyer told the committee the club would put a stop to the parties on the roof until the SLA acts, but CB3 members were unmoved by this offer.
It’s now up to the State Liquor Authority to decide whether Ludlow Manor acted improperly and whether the expanded liquor license should be granted. For the operators of the Ludlow Manor, who have poured a lot of money into a high profile venue, a lot is riding on that decision.
