It’s been a long year for the Brooklyn Mirage.
The East Williamsburg live music venue may be turning a new leaf after the building’s owner applied for a demolition permit for at least part of the venue, part of a larger space called Avant Gardner.
A demolition would mark the end of a tumultuous series of months that included canceled shows, bankruptcy filings and overflowing renovation costs.
The application concerns a complete demolition of 32,000 square meters. The total complex covers approximately 80,000 square feet and has an estimated cost of $1.5 million, according to the permit application. Avant Gardner did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The problems for the Brooklyn Mirage and Avant Gardner began in 2023, after two separate incidents in which customers were found dead after visiting the location. (The venue said the deaths were tragic but denied responsibility.)
But the party continued until earlier this year, when the venue closed for a series of renovations. The company set an opening date of May 1 and booked a summer of shows.
Instead, the room was silent. The site failed to meet the inspection deadline and the buildings department revoked the temporary occupancy certificate, Brooklyn Paper reported.
Although the Mirage applied for the permit every year, the buildings department told Brooklyn Paper that the venue’s latest edition not only did not meet permit guidelines, but was downright unsafe.
“DOB had numerous objections to the play area, both safety-related and technical in nature, which prevented the project from being up to code and safe enough to open to the public,” a DOB spokesperson told Brooklyn Paper. “This was not a matter of red tape, but rather a list of legitimate problems with built space.”
Avant Gardner fired the CEO and replaced him with Gary Richards, also known by his DJ alias Destructo. What adds to the drama is BKMag published the eyewitness account of an eavesdropper who overheard Richards telling his dinner companion at the French restaurant Per Se that the company was having trouble finding a buyer.
Avant Gardner’s parent company filed for bankruptcy in early August. It reported $153.3 million in funded debt obligationsaccording to Bloomberg.
Richards blamed financial troubles on the loss of the Mirage and aggressive lenders, with some advancing the company $20 million to stay afloat, according to Bloomberg. The company said it was working with the buildings department on a remediation plan.
Most recently, Avant Gardner proposed a settlement with creditors, Law360 reported. According to bankruptcy documents, a subsidiary of the company’s lender plans to purchase the site’s assets after receiving no other qualified bids.
A hearing to approve the sale is scheduled for Oct. 22.
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