A Nightclub Business Plan Should Address Nuisance Issues Too

It is important to include dealing with nuisance issues as part of your nightclub business plan that could arise if your club will share its parking lot and sidewalks with other nearby bars and clubs. Like it or not, the first impediment to getting a permit and neighborhood approvals are the nuisance issues that might arise or already exist, such as public drunkenness, noise and fights. Now, I am not saying you should call attention to potential nuisance problems when courting investors. However, it should be a key component of any due diligence when determining if the particular location for a night club is sensible or not including its parking and surrounding neighborhood. Here are examples of nuisance issues to consider in the site selections for your nightclub business plan: In Jackson, Florida several clubs are being targeted by the city and may risk potential closures as a result of over 300 police calls involving numerous nuisance problems outside their premises, which were on or near the parking lots. Although nightclub management at these three bars and clubs had taken security and crowd control steps inside their operations to prevent these nuisance incidents, their proximity to the town square nearby adds to the problem in the view of local government officials. In a separate location near Foster City, California, we worked as the bar and nightclub expert with a client who encountered similar problems. In this situation, it involved their existing restaurant and bar which expanded into a late night club without any planning for the consequences. The nearby neighbors adjacent to its parking lot objected to potential nuisance issues. Later and after $150,000 in legal fees and property sound alternation expenses, it still was only approved to operate under a limited hours permit by the city. The take away here, and when developing a nightclub business plan, is research and evaluate the impact any nuisance issues could have on the business both before and after opening. Then, decide if you can afford any added costs in security, permits and legal fees to move forward or look elsewhere instead.