Blue Note Lounge to be demolished

LYNN – The Blue Note has hit a sour note with a planned development for the Sagamore Hill area and will be demolished shortly after the New Year.”We purchased it about two months ago at foreclosure,” said Lynn Housing and Neighborhood Development Executive Director Charles Gaeta. “Neighborhood Development has been trying to put together parcels down there ? part of a bigger picture.”The Neighborhood Development Associates has been working for several years on a plan to redevelop the strip of Washington Street that runs from Broad Street to the Lynnway or what it calls the Sagamore Hill Corridor. The big picture includes creating a mixture of 80 rental units and about a dozen town houses along with 5,000 square feet of retail space and 3,000 square feet of community space.Gaeta said not a lot of noticeable work has been done in the area, with the exceptions of four new homes going up on Suffolk Court but a lot is going on behind the scenes.The Neighborhood Development Association has also purchased an old building located behind The Sand Bar, a beach bar located on Washington Street right next door to the Blue Note. Gaeta said the building would be torn down probably the same time the Blue Note is demolished. He also indicated the associations has designs on acquiring The Sand Bar as well but that he was not at liberty to speak on the issue.Sand Bar owner Chris Brown could not be reached for comment but Seth Albaum, who lives downtown, said the bar owner has a sign posted stating that he is not leaving and Albaum hopes it’s true.Albaum, who is also a member of the Downtown Lynn Neighborhood Association, said he doesn’t disagree that particular strip of Washington Street needs to be renovated but he does have concerns.He said he doesn’t think residential housing and North Shore Community College, which takes up all of the land opposite the corridor, is a good mix. He’s also of the opinion that there is already a dearth of small live entertainment venues in the area.”The Blue Note may not have been run optimally in its last years, but it has the bones of a great space that, with the right owner, can do the city a lot of good – even if it is located just slightly outside the Arts and Culture District,” he said. “It also has nostalgic value for a lot of musicians in the area.”Just a year ago Blue Note owner Enkeleida Valle tried to transfer the liquor license so she could sell the club, which was already closed at the time. The License Board denied the transfer on public safety issues and Enkeleida said she was at a loss as to what to do with the property.Albaum said he believes the Sand Bar has been great at bringing in a mix of original and cover bands and has been an overall positive asset to the neighborhood. He thought Neighborhood Development should put a restaurant at the Blue Note location rather than housing as another draw for the downtown area.Gaeta said demolition aside, nothing was going to happen anytime soon in the area.”It’s long term,” he said. “It’s taken about seven years to put all the parcels together. I would guess it would take a couple years more to finance everything.”One thing Gaeta said he wanted to make clear is that the housing plans are not for subsidized housing.”Everyone sees our name and thinks subsidized development but this is for working families,” he said. “I think it’s important for people to know that.”Chris Stevens can be reached at [email protected].