Columbia rock club, long home to local bands, temporarily closed as expenses mount
Shortly after transitioning to new ownership, a longstanding Columbia rock club sits temporarily closed without the ability to sell alcohol.
New Brookland Tavern, which moved from West Columbia to the University of South Carolina-adjacent Five Points neighborhood in December, canceled a touring metal concert last Friday night, with owner Carlin Thompson posting on social media that the club would remain “closed for a few days while we deal with an issue.”
Thompson announced in late-July that he was taking over ownership of the club after largely handling booking and sound for New Brookland for a number of years. Mike Lyons, who owned the business since 2004, had announced in May that he was looking for someone to buy him out.
The new owner said that due to an issue with the venue’s taxes, its alcohol licenses are being withheld.
Asked about New Brookland’s tax situation and the status of its permits, a spokesperson for the S.C. Department of Revenue confirmed that the venue’s alcohol permits “were not renewed before they expired on August 31, 2024. The alcohol licenses at this location were not suspended, but because their licenses were not renewed before the expiration date, this location does not possess valid alcohol licenses at this time.”
As of Sept. 3, the department doesn’t list any outstanding tax liens against New Brookland in its online database.
Lyons was not immediately reachable for comment Tuesday about his former business’ situation.
Thompson said the plan is to reopen with or without the permits by this Friday, earlier if they’re able to come to an agreement with the state to get the permits reinstated. If they can’t get the permits by Friday, when an album-release show from local band Hillmouse is scheduled, New Brookland will reopen without the ability to sell alcohol.
The new club owner said he’s exploring the option of applying for special event permits to sell alcohol at shows while he works through the complications with their regular permits.
The tax and permit issue is poorly timed for New Brookland, as it will now have to come to a financial understanding with the state to get its alcohol permits reinstated while also shouldering considerable insurance expenses, Thompson said.
A state law passed in 2017 requiring businesses with beer or liquor licenses to maintain at least $1 million in liability coverage has caused rates in South Carolina to spike, and the number of providers to shrink. Thompson said he recently learned New Brookland will have to pay $70,000 with an $18,000 down payment for insurance in the coming year.
“It definitely sucks. It’s not great,” Thompson said of facing down the venue’s tax issues and insurance costs. “I have no idea what we’re going to do.”
A full-time music venue since at least 1998, New Brookland is a crucial hub for music in the Midlands, a home for both smaller touring bands and local acts looking to refine their sound and build an audience.
Cameron Powell is a local musician for more than a decade who has played in various bands and who books shows both at Transmission Arcade, the bar he co-owns on Columbia’s Main Street, and for the city’s monthly First Thursday on Main events. He commiserated with New Brookland about the pinch the club is feeling from liability expenses and lamented what the Midlands would lose if the venue were to close permanently.
Columbia doesn’t really have another workable and consistently available venue for regional touring bands, Powell said, adding that New Brookland has long served as a crucial home for local acts.
“It would be terrible to lose a venue that kind of holds the scrolls, if you will, for Columbia’s local music history,” Powell said. “So many massive touring bands in their early stages came through New Brookland Tavern, and that’s always kind of been the case.”
The club has been in the process of expanding its mission to bolster the local music scene, preparing to open a stage in an adjoining space to add another, smaller option to host shows, particularly those featuring up-and-coming locals who can’t yet bring a big enough crowd for the club’s main showroom.
“I think it is a major staple in the music community here,” Thompson told The State last month. “And the idea of it not being here, it just doesn’t make sense.”
This story was originally published September 3, 2024 at 6:17 PM.
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