Wednesday, January 24, 2007
BRADYS
BRADY'S
Proposal To create
RESTAURANT-BAR
ARTS CLUB-THEATRE
with live
ROCK-JAZZ-SOUL-BLUES MUSIC
proposal
To convert Brady's into a bar restaurant with live music, theatre and home of the Brixton Arts Club.
music
I am planning to bring into Central Brixton various acts and performers in the rock/jazz/soul/blues style of music. I have felt for some time that Central Brixton desperately needs a small to medium sizes live entertainment venue, promoting young up and coming bands. I have over thirty years of experience in this field and have promoted every one from the Clash, police, Souxsie and the Banshees at my first punk club 'The Roxy' in 1977, to Take That, Marc Almond, Eartha Kitt and Sade at the Fridge.
The venue will include a acoustic and comedy bar with theatre/performance space on the first floor.
I also intend to put on regular exhibitions to promote artists and their work. I have successfully run the Fridge gallery in Acre Lane Brixton with exhibitions by students from Chelsea School of Art, Royal College of Art, St Martins School of Art, Camberwell School of Art, and many individual artist including John O'donnell b.a., r.a., and Paul Ashurst a local internationally respected artist, these events have proven very successful with enquiries still coming to me for show space.
The rear of the premises will converted into a restaurant which will be open daytime to visitors/market traders and families, in addition to normal evening trade.
design & plans.
It is my intention to refurbish the exterior of the building to it's original condition, including restoration of it's almost unique six sided clock tower, I understand one of only two in England
conversion costs.
I am unable to provide you on short notice a detailed breakdown but both I and my valuers predict a figure of approx. £650,000.
employment & training.
I expect to employ 8-12 full time staff and 30-40 part time staff.
Through my experience of owning and running the Fridge Bar and Fridge Nightclub which employed over a hundred and twenty people, I had discovered a chronic shortage of staff with appropriate bar restaurant skills.
I plan to create a teaching school for young people who wish to enter the bar/catering trade. this would not be a catering school but a short term work experience and training school for catering support staff i.e.. bar staff, waiting staff, front of house personnel who need to know about service, safety, hygiene, cleanliness, personal tidiness, good manners and helpful demeanour. I have over the years found it difficult to recruit the level of staff required. I can only see this getting more difficult with the explosion of bars and restaurants in London
location.
This is a densely populated area which could not sustain any more vehicular traffic but with it's very close connection to the underground and over ground railway systems plus good bus connections I an confident I can promote travel to this venue without too much dependence on cars. The other, and probably most important consideration would of course be the immediate local residents, i would very much like to have full and frank discussions with any who may hold a view on this proposal, noise, pollution and general hubbub are always issues, but ones I feel I have the experience to deal with.
this particular location is very dark and dingy which will be difficult to police being in the heart of drug territory, i can only say that the success of this venue and location will depend on the ability to control this element, i can say that i have managed to operate one of London's top five venues in this area for over 23 years and with that comes a legacy of respect which i believe will hold me in good stead to deal with these issues.
finance .
This project will be entirely privately funded and will not be dependant on applications to any outside bodies and so refurbishment would be immediate with a planned opening in 9-12 months.
I would like to add that at no time have I been funded for any of my ventures from local or central government or charitable bodies, soI can confidently claim that should this offer/proposal be accepted it would have an immediate and beneficial effect.
This proposal is being put forward by Andrew Czezowski, owner and former operator of the Fridge Bar, Fridge night-club and Fridge Gallery in Brixton. I have been a Lambeth resident since 1951 and a Brixton resident from 1960 until I moved to Streatham in 1972, where I still reside.
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