Hey Man, Want to Rent a Bar?

By on December 17, 2008 1:47 pm in Development, Real Estate
Photo by EJ/BK11201.com

Photo by EJ/BK11201.com

The space formerly known as Magnetic Field at 97 Atlantic Avenue is available for rent. Which brings up the question (all over again): What would you do with Magnetic Field?

Brick Real Estate is listing the rental at $5500/month and the inside of MF looks pretty much the same. Will one BHB reader be courageous enough to rent at this price and get Homer’s social life back up to speed?

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  • skunky

    problem is, getting a liquor license….

  • Mike

    We should get a group of BHB readers together and make it a co-op. Subsidized drinks for all who work there and full price drinks for the rest. It would be much more fun than the Park Slope Grocery Co-Op.

    Doesnt the place already have a liquor license? I dont know how it works, does the LL stay with the bar, or with the proprietor, if it is with the proprietor, maybe we can buy it from the old owners.

  • Joralemon neighbor

    I like the idea of a neighborhood co-op bar! And I do believe that the LL is still valid.

  • CJP

    I’m not a big fan of socialized anything apart from automakers and financial institutions but this idea of a community-run bar isn’t the nuttiest thing I’ve heard proposed on here. AT some level it makes sense and with the right commitment it could possibly work!

    The Park Slope analogy advanced by Mike has merit. Raises a number of thorny issues about security, staffing and breaking even but the Co-op people in Park Slope have successfully addressed that for a couple of decades.

    $5500 a month rent works out to selling 1100 drinks a month at $5.00 a pop. And then of course are all of your other costs of doing business. Obviously the previous owner couldn’t make it work and no buyer has jumped in quickly.

    No coop is going to get rich but the idea of a locally, community run bar has merit. Or am I really yearning for a social club that would actually accept me for a member?

    I’m hoping the idea succeeds. Not sure I want to be on your board of directors but happy to be a patron!

  • Mike

    CJP, I’m not a fan of socialized anything, especially socialized automakers, but lets not go down that path. More than a social experiment, I was more thinking about some hybrid “club” model. You get a core group of several dozen or so people who buy a membership interest in the bar. These member dues are used for up-front costs, such as buying the booze, paying electricity and rent.

    Lets just say for arguments sake we get 100 people who buy into the bar for $800 each. Thats $80,000 to start, hopefully we can get some credit, purchase supplies and get going.

    People who buy in then get cheaper drinks than the rest (at cost). Membership is sold continuously to all, who are free to join. This is where we can make it interesting. We can make it like a company, whereby I can sell my membership to you, or we can do another model whereby there is a pool of money that is needed to keep the place running and any membership fees above and beyond that pool are returned pro-rata to members.

    Any profits (we can always wish) are split evenly among members. And of course, the bar is open to all.

  • Teddie Boy Eddie

    Mike,

    It’s not a bad idea. In fact, I believe I had a similar conversation in Magnetic field with Homer the week it closed.

  • Teddie Boy Eddie

    I should clarify. I meant the social club idea, not the co-op idea. I hadn’t thought of that before.

  • Homer Fink

    Yes we did “TBE”. Actually all we need is one person to join at a rate of like $100k/year and we’d be set.

  • Teddie Boy Eddie

    So true. Where’s my checkbook? I just need to liquidate some holdings being managed by Bernie Madoff first.

  • Mike

    If either of you guys are serious, I am happy to think it through with you.

    I probably know at least a further 5 or 6 people who would be interested (obviously we will need many more than that though).

  • Homer Fink

    Mike, if you’re name is not Ponzi we’re interested.

  • Englebert

    See comment #1. It ain’t happening here.

  • suerte

    I am most definately in

  • me

    it was a lovely bar before it closed. I brought a group of beer-sybarites (if that word makes sense) and runners there and some talked about the quality of the beer for weeks afterward. Plus great lighting and interior.

  • Norman E-mailer

    I’m in. I’ll do whatever’s necessary.

  • boozehound barrister

    The liquor license does not say with the “bar” since the bar is just a space for rent. The license is most likely held by the entity that was the tenant under the lease of the space. Therefore you would need to apply for a liquor license yourself, or buy the business from the tenant, however, i think even if you do that, the liquor authority will require you to re-apply anyway since there is a material change in management and control of the licensed entity.

    On the plus side, most leases for bars and restaurants have a provision allowing the Tenant to terminate the lease if it is denied a liquor license after a certain period of time.

  • http://www.dickswizzle.com Dick Swizzle

    The liquor license stays with the proprietor (that’d be me) and it expired this month. The land lord is not the nicest FYI.