EVERETT – To the relief of nearby residents, a new south Everett restaurant and minicasino will forgo having live music and dancing.
A spokesman for The Club, set to open in the summer, said Tuesday the owner won’t appeal an Everett Board of Adjustment decision that denied the business the code variance it needed to have live music and dancing.
The appeal could have meant a delay in opening The Club, said Robert Downing of Downing Owensby, the architect and designer for the business.
“You know the old saying, time is money,” he said.
Downing said the building at 620 SE Everett Mall Way, formerly home to a bingo hall and a restaurant, is undergoing construction and a redesign. The business, which will cater to an upscale crowd, will include smoking and nonsmoking gaming rooms and a restaurant, he said. Parts of The Club may be open 24 hours a day.
Instead of live music, the stage area will likely be used for comedy and lip-syncing to recorded music, Downing said.
However, Allan Giffen, city planning director, said karaoke would be considered live music.
City code requires businesses with live music and dancing to be at least 100 feet from residential zones. The Club is about 25 feet from houses to the south.
Not having live music and dancing will mean a significant loss in revenue, he said.
“The loss is what the loss is,” Downing said. “We’ll just accept it and move on. We still want to be good neighbors.”
Sandra Greer and her husband, Richard Van Tassel, are separated from The Club by little more than a 6-foot wood fence. Their back yard is their sanctuary. It’s where they relax in the hot tub, entertain guests and sit out and watch the stars.
“It’s kind of our little oasis in the city,” she said.
Greer said she’s glad The Club decided not to appeal the decision, though she worries that in a year the business will again try for a zoning variance.
Downing and The Club’s owner, Tony Marson, have promised to be good neighbors and even organized a meeting to let residents know about the variance application.
Greer hopes they mean it and that the business will be considerate of neighbors’ quality of life.
“I’m hoping, hoping, hoping that … they care like they say they do,” she said. “I just want it to be positive for everybody.”
Downing said working with the neighbors has always been part of their plan.
“It’s part of good business to be a good neighbor,” he said. “We’re not out to make anybody’s life miserable. I think it will be a good addition to the area and the city.”
Reporter Jennifer Warnick: 425-339-3429 or jwarnick@heraldnet.com.
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