Taxi Club set to close

Taxi Club set to close

The embattled Taxi Club will finally shut its doors on April 8, its board of directors has announced.

In an email to club members, the oard announced that, following a general downturn in revenue dating back to 2006, the club now faced its final weeks in operation.

“We reluctantly announce the closure of the Taxi Club, as it currently stands, at close of business on Sunday, April 8 2012 (Easter Sunday),” they wrote.

“Despite our best efforts, our financial situation has deteriorated to the point where we have no option other than to shortly cease trading. This is an enormously disheartening decision, and has not been taken lightly.”

The board pointed to many factors which influenced the decision, many of them stemming from the previous board and management. These included the removal of the club’s Place of Public
Entertainment Licence, poorly controlled building works, and failing to secure the ownership of the adjacent car park.

“There’ve certainly been indicators that things needed to change for us to survive — particularly the turnover of the club with the poker machines, which unfortunately has decreased markedly over the last few years,” club director Ron Langham told the Star Observer.

“And a few years ago, there was the whole issue with the previous board and management, who took decisions that weren’t in the club’s best interest.

“We’ve been struggling for the last three and a half years to rectify that — unfortunately, to no avail at this stage.”

While April 8 is earmarked as the club’s closing date, nothing is set in stone, and Langham said a turnaround in the club’s fortunes in these final few weeks may go some way to alleviating the dire situation.

“The biggest thing people can do is to patronise the club in this last month. If we can get some really good turnover, anything’s possible at the end of the month.

“We can’t make any promises, because we don’t know what the outcome of that would be. But based on current figures, we’ve made the decision to close on the 8th.”

Regardless of the final outcome, Langham promised that these last few weeks would be an eventful time for the venue’s loyal patrons.

“We’ll certainly go out with a bang. I’m not sure what we’ll have planned — Michelle, our general manager, will be working on that in conjunction with the board — but certainly there’ll be shows and all sorts of things leading up to the 8th.”

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4 responses to “Taxi Club set to close”

  1. Sad to hear this fantastic place may be closing but do try to come down and show some support for the club.
    As for parking,yes it is hard to fing a park but….the last few times ive got parking straight away,you just have to park that little further away,no big deal.
    The restaurant is fantastic and the food was great.
    I think it will be a real shame that this iconic club close its doors.

  2. It’s a shame,Devine Restaurant downstairs was the best place for a Dinnerdate for budget Conscious queens on a budget where you get a quality entree and main for two people for less the $60,you won’t find that on Oxford street.
    Personally I think that closing the State Rail Authority owned carpark (Just after spending thousands on an Electric Gate) was one of the downfalls of the Club,it certainly made my partner and I think twice from driving all the way in from the Western Suburbs when it suddenly closed and realized there was just no parking spots in the surrounding areas on a fri/sat night.
    Shame it was a decent club,good food,good drink prices,friendly staff,cushy lounges to rest on if you needed time out after shopping on Oxford Street with a cool drink,crying shame
    Thanks

  3. This is a real shame.

    The Taxi Club has served the Trans community for decades providing a safe venue for many leaving the bigotry of suburbia and entering into the wider community as our true selves for the first few times.

  4. As this article rightly states, we need everyones support over the next month. The Taxi Club is a Sydney icon and deserves her one last push.

    If you have never been to the Taxi Club, this is your chance – come along and see what all the fuss has been about over the last 56 years.

    Ron Langham
    Director