Hoping to break out

When Newport Beach resident James Raven applied for a conditional use

permit in August to create a nightclub in the basement of 1901

Newport Blvd. -- the Spanish colonial building once referred to as

Pacific Savings Plaza -- he figured Club Vegas would open by 2003. He

didn’t realize that work on the project would not have been started

by March.

But it is March and Raven still awaits the final OK to start

building a dance floor, martini bar and such.

The Planning Commission approved the project in January, but the

Costa Mesa Fire Marshal has safety concerns.

The recent nightclub tragedies in Chicago and Rhode Island, in

that order, have put the spotlight on nightclub safety and the number

of exits nightclubs should have. In regards to Club Vegas, it would

need three exits for 500 or more people and four for more than 1,000

patrons. Club Vegas plans to host about 600 people at most.

On Friday, City Editor James Meier stopped by Raven’s office in

1901 Newport Blvd. to discuss the club, the fire marshal’s concerns

and the recent rash of nightclub tragedies.

Ideally, when will Club Vegas open?

The short answer is as soon as I can possibly get it built. At

this point, I wouldn’t be able to hazard a guess. I had hoped some

time in May and that had been revised forward several times. It’s the

nature of these projects, I think, to make it difficult on you to

predict a firm date.

But I’d say before summer if possible.

That would seem remarkable. You have to start from scratch as it

is right now.

Well, yes. I think, at the stage that the design process is, it’s

possible we can get the space built 60 to 90 days from the moment we

start. I think. It remains to be seen whether that’s reality.

At the same time, I filed my application for the beginning of this

process in August of last year. So I would hope I could be open by

August or fall this year.

What are your thoughts on the holdup by the fire marshal?

Realistically, his concerns are well-noted and they have been

expressed in meetings with my code expert, architects, myself and

various building officials. And our goal is to accommodate the needs

of the safety of the citizens of Orange County and Costa Mesa.

We have submitted a revised plan that incorporates a third exit in

that space, which gives us a total of four in the entire venue. The

plan we have worked on for four months to ensure, with code experts,

that it completely complies with the California Building Code, which

is the most restrictive code in the nation regarding my particular

use. We are very confident that it does comply with that.

The building is made out of cement. It is fully (protected with

fire sprinklers). There’s nothing that’s going in there that doesn’t

meet the California Building Code, material-wise, which is also the

most restrictive in the nation with regard to my use for fire safety

issues. And we fully believe that our particular space will be the

safest nightclub that can be built to date given the knowledge and

expertise involved in the design of the project. And I think that is

reflected in the plan that we’ve submitted and I hope the city will

find the same.

Now how have the tragedies in Chicago and Rhode Island affected

your project?

They have certainly created an increased interest and scrutiny in

the safety issues, which is not necessarily unwelcome. The more

scrutiny we receive in this process at this time, I think increases

the level of confidence that everybody has in the actual safety of

the space once we finally get open. And as far as I’m concerned, I

would welcome that from that standpoint and I do believe we have a

very safe plan....

To reiterate what I’ve said, it’s a cement building with full fire

sprinklers and we’re not going to put anything in it that’s flammable

beyond the California Building Code statute, which, again, is the

most restrictive in the nation and our plan complies with that.

What exactly will your nightclub entail?

It’s kind of a three-ring circus. We have the restaurant and

lounge portion with the martini bar that incorporates the entrance

and patio deck. And that is basically designed to resemble a sort of

retro-modern 1950s-style martini-modern fabulous Las Vegas in the

1950s wine bar where you might see Sammy Davis Jr. and Dean Martin

sipping a martini. While it’s not quite so retro as to be stuffy, we

think it’s warm and comfortable and we’re very excited to offer

something of that scale to the area.

The nightclub space itself, which is an adjunct to the entire

operation, is designed to resemble a Palm Springs martini modern pool

bar with blue vinyl tile on the dance floor....Our primary target

market is an affluent upscale clientele between 25 and 50 years of

age primarily beachside of the (San Diego) Freeway in Orange County.

What made you choose 1901 Newport Blvd.? I had always been interested in the property since, actually,

Atlantis closed in 1996. I had spent a great deal of time looking in

the area of Costa Mesa, Newport, Irvine to find another place to

continue my business. At the time, it was under different ownership

than it is now and was unavailable to me for the use.

I had noticed a little over a year ago now that it appeared the

ownership had changed. So I spoke to the new owners and was surprised

to discover the availability of the space of the east wing sublevel

that I don’t think anybody ever really knew about. I thought it would

be ideal for my use and they (Rutter Development and Kennedy-Wilson)

agreed and here we are.

When did you initially plan to open?

Initially, when we filed for a conditional use permit last August,

we had hoped to be open by New Year’s. Whether or not that was

realistic, in hindsight, perhaps not. But we certainly hoped we would

be able to open in a reasonable amount of time.

Any final thoughts?

Yes, I’d like to add that, given (Thursday’s) Pilot article, I’d

like to thank the City Council members and planning commissioners

that have spoken on my behalf to the city with regard to my project.

I’m not sure that the appropriate venue to air these grievances would

have been in the paper, but there it is.

And, realistically speaking, my experience with the city, although

it has at times seemed to take a long time, they have always behaved

in a professional manner and I would say their concerns are not out

of line.

And I hope I can be a benefit for the community and can open my

venue.