County rains on teen club parade

It was a grand opening -- and closing -- in the same exasperated breath.

The kids were there, around 100 of them, horsing around in hoodies and tie-dye.

An SUV from rock radio station Area 108 sat in the parking lot, its staffers handing out concert tickets and such.

All-ages music venue The Alley was primed for its comeback last Friday night, and things got off to a promising start, with buoyant co-ed popsters The Parachutes chirping through bright singalongs like a pubescent Yo La Tengo.

But while the very first band of the night was playing, The Alley received a surprise visit from a county official who informed the venue that it had to cease operations because it was within a 1,500-foot radius of an establishment that sold liquor.

What caused the violations? A nearby gas station that sells beer and a sushi restaurant that serves alcohol on the other side of the strip mall that The Alley is located in.

"That was quick, wasn't it?" chuckles Alley overseer Dan Maltzman, smiling a little ruefully in The Alley parking lot after learning that the club he had worked months to re-open was ordered to shut its doors.

Located in the back of the Family Music Center on West Sahara Avenue, The Alley had operated without incident during its initial run, which ended in the spring of 2006.

But apparently, that wasn't enough to satisfy Clark County regulators.

"The code is there, I have to abide by it," Maltzman sighs.

Sure, the law is a well-meaning one: No one wants kids hanging around bars and drunks.

But it effectively makes running an all-ages venue in this booze-happy town a tall order. This is particularly hard to swallow considering that teens are allowed in casinos during certain hours, where they're surrounded by alcohol and gambling, and yet kid-tailored venues such as The Alley feel the pinch.

The Alley is as safe a venue as they come: It's run by parents and teens, it boasts a friendly, welcoming vibe and on Friday, a row of moms and dads watched the show from the back of the room.

"The great thing about that venue is it starts forming a sense of community for the kids," says Kyle Lobeck of Vegas rockers You In Series. "A lot of the same kids go to a lot of the shows there. It's a safe place for them to go to watch live music and socialize with their friends."

It's also proven to be a launching pad for young bands, with such notable locals as Panic! at the Disco, Fletch and Escape the Fate cutting their teeth there.

"Where else can a band play one of their first shows and actually make money from the fans they bring?" asks Joey Resly of Vegas' Ashbury. "I also think that parents are way more enthusiastic about their children going to shows near Summerlin than they are dropping their kids off downtown."

But in a city as non-kid-friendly as they come, another important outlet has been shuttered, though Maltzman vows to press on.

"I'll figure something out," he says with a wink. "I always do."

Jason Bracelin's "Sounding Off" column appears on Tuesdays. Contact him at 383-0476 or e-mail him at jbracelin@ reviewjournal.com.