Larkin Hi-Fi closing, owner partly blames cabaret license

ALBANY, N.Y. (NEWS10) — A local business has decided to close after 18 months of operation. It blames decreased foot traffic on Lark Street and an Albany ordinance that requires public spaces to have a license for any live music that includes singing and dancing.

The Larkin Hi-Fi doors will close for good on Friday, November 7. Co-owner Nick Warchol talked to NEWS10 last year about his concerns with Albany’s cabaret license, after code enforcement shut down his business while it was operating on a Friday night.

Warchol said he has struggled to obtain a license ever since. It’s an issue Albany Common Councilman Sergio Adams (Ward 7) said he was trying to address. 

Several business owners have shared with Adams the issues they’ve faced with the cabaret license requirement. He attempted to repeal the cabaret license requirement.

“We were able to get to a point where we pushed the legislation out of committee a few months back over the summer, and we brought it to a vote and that was one of the meetings where the public did not show up for it,” said Adams.

“So the other side to that is the public, you know, having these major concerns, having a distaste for how things are operating, and seeing how things are playing out by not being able to make it to a meeting for the council members, and others, to hear from them and get a better understanding as to why it’s so important that we repeal this law,” said Adams. But ultimately… 

“Ultimately the repeal fell through because we needed one more vote,” said Adams.

He wanted to streamline the process to make it easier for business owners to play live music, whether that’s a band or DJs. 

He said he wanted to address the redundancies – with the city requesting the same information business owners are already providing. He said there’s a redundant nature of the law, because the city already has a noise ordinance on the books.

Adams said the goal was to give owners more flexibility with how they operate their business.

But now, Councilman Richard Conti (Ward 6) has a new version of the bill, Ordinance 3.41.25. Conti said it would streamline the licensing approval process, make the one year license valid for three years, and would automatically approve licenses if city departments miss deadlines.

“It’s meant to really streamline the current process. We’ve heard the complaints and the issues and the concerns and, you know, I agree we need to significantly streamline the process, make it easier, quicker and, you know, more of a guarantee in a sense that we’re getting things done quickly,” said Conti.

He was on the common council when Albany first adopted the cabaret license, voting in favor of the ordinance. “Was put in place ten, 12, 15 years ago was, you know, not knowing it was kind of cumbersome,” said Conti.

But, he said, it was not intended to hurt the vibrancy of the neighborhood, or place an undue burden on a business.

“It can be a challenge. But I think we’re up to the challenge, to try to find how we can make that all work so that the commercial and the residential complement each other. And if we do that, we’re a stronger neighborhood,” said Conti. But Adams does not agree with the new ordinance. 

“We are seeing way too many small businesses close and leave the City of Albany. I personally believe if this draft legislation gets passed that we are going to see more places close because more people, more business owners are going to say it’s not worth it,” said Adams.

Business owners have discussed their struggles on and around Lark Street recently, with the recent closure of El Loco and even more recently, on Sunday, after a fire broke out in the building that houses Bitchin’ Donuts. 

Bitchin’ Donuts Owner Tania Sharlow talked to NEWS10 about her concerns for the business and her staff ahead of the holidays.

When I asked if she had any concerns with continuing operations on Lark Street. Sharlow said, “There’s absolutely concerns about continuing operations here in this spot. We’ve also not looked at them as concerns. We’ve looked at them as things we must overcome.”

She said they have a GoFundMe set up to help them get back open and operating.

“We do try to keep a very business as usual kind of appearance going on. While there is heartbreaking stuff going on all around us, violence, drugs, uncertainty with other businesses on the street, which affects all of us,” said Sharlow.

She added, ‘a rising tide lifts all boats’, “and that’s what we’ve always tried to do, is be an anchor and a bastion of light in this little corner on Spring and Lark and make the whole street shine,” said Sharlow.

Conti acknowledged the difficulties business owners are faced with but said there are still many opportunities in the area.

“You need to give businesses certainty when they want to open up and do things and change and not have to go through a long regulatory process. So that was building up over the years,” said Conti.

The Albany Common Council is set to vote on the revised ordinance Monday evening. However, Warchol said they’ve made up their mind and it’s not worth it.

The Larkin Hi-Fi is open all week from 5:00 P.M. to 12:00 A.M. until its last day on Friday, November 7, when they’ll operate from 5:00 P.M. to 2:00 A.M.