\n\t\t\t\t\t\tA Sacramento music landmark that has endured Prohibition, multiple moves, and decades of change is now confronting a new challenge: city code enforcement.The owner of the Torch Club, a longtime live music venue at 15th and I streets, said the pressure to comply with city rules \u2014 and the fines that come with falling short \u2014 is threatening the business’s future.\u201cIt\u2019s just like a nugget in this town,\u201d patron Riley Unverferth said. \u201cAnd there are such strong supporters of this place.\u201dFor decades, the Torch Club has been a fixture in Sacramento\u2019s live music scene. Unverferth said he hopes \u201cthe Torch Club goes around for a hundred years.\u201dOwner Marina Texeira said she is trying to keep the venue open as it addresses code violations tied to its entertainment operations.\u201cWe\u2019re just trying to keep it moving and, you know, doing the best we can,\u201d Texeira said.Texeira said the club has been dealing with code violations for the past several weeks and continues to be fined until it returns to compliance.\u201cWe have kind of been dealing for the last few weeks with some code violations,\u201d Texeira said. \u201cAnd until we\u2019re in compliance, they\u2019re continuing to fine us.\u201dIn a statement, the city of Sacramento said one of the requirements tied to the club\u2019s entertainment permit is having approved security guards in place anytime entertainment is provided. The city said establishments offering entertainment under Sacramento city code must have an entertainment permit and comply with both city rules and state requirements for security guards.Texeira acknowledged that a permit allowing in-house security had lapsed.\u201cIt was an oversight on my part on a certain permit,\u201d Texeira said. \u201cIt allows me to have in-house security. And I let that lapse. Not intentionally. It was just an oversight. I am a small business owner. I kind of do all the things, and I missed it, and I own that.\u201dStill, she said the repeated fines are making it harder to stay afloat while she works through the process of getting back into compliance.\u201cThe process could take like two months,\u201d Texeira said. \u201cSo my concern was they\u2019re going to come every time we have music and fine me, which would just decimate me.\u201dSacramento City Councilmember Phil Pluckebaum said the Torch Club contacted his office earlier this week, and a meeting is being arranged between city staff and the venue\u2019s ownership.\u201cWe\u2019re pulling a meeting together tomorrow with City Code, the entertainment division, and then the ownership of the Torch to have a fuller discussion about what\u2019s working, what\u2019s not, and what we can do differently,\u201d Pluckebaum said.Pluckebaum said small businesses, especially entertainment venues, are already under pressure, and the city should look for ways to reduce burdens where possible.\u201cWe don\u2019t have many small venues like this left,\u201d Pluckebaum said. \u201cAnd we want to make sure that these are vibrant places for people to go and experience arts and culture and have a good time while they\u2019re doing it. We want to make sure that the businesses have every opportunity to be successful and profitable and thrive.\u201dIn a statement to KCRA, the city said it is working with the Torch Club to resolve the compliance issues and emphasized that safety remains the priority.\u201cThe city recognizes that the Torch Club plays an important role in Sacramento\u2019s live music scene, but it is important for all businesses in Sacramento to operate safely,\u201d the statement said.Texeira said she hopes the meeting leads to a solution that allows the club to continue operating without the threat of mounting fines.\u201cThey want a lively downtown that\u2019s safe,\u201d Texeira said. \u201cAnd I totally get that. We are safe, and we are lively. So I would just like to work together so we can come to some agreement.\u201dTexeira did not provide a total dollar amount for the fines, but said she hopes the upcoming meeting with city officials will help keep the music playing.See more coverage of top California stories here | Download our app | Subscribe to our morning newsletter | Find us on YouTube here and subscribe to our channel\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\t\tSACRAMENTO, Calif. \u2014 \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
A Sacramento music landmark that has endured Prohibition, multiple moves, and decades of change is now confronting a new challenge: city code enforcement.<\/p>\n
The owner of the Torch Club, a longtime live music venue at 15th and I streets, said the pressure to comply with city rules \u2014 and the fines that come with falling short \u2014 is threatening the business’s future.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s just like a nugget in this town,\u201d patron Riley Unverferth said. \u201cAnd there are such strong supporters of this place.\u201d<\/p>\n
For decades, the Torch Club has been a fixture in Sacramento\u2019s live music scene. Unverferth said he hopes \u201cthe Torch Club goes around for a hundred years.\u201d<\/p>\n
Owner Marina Texeira said she is trying to keep the venue open as it addresses code violations tied to its entertainment operations.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re just trying to keep it moving and, you know, doing the best we can,\u201d Texeira said.<\/p>\n
Texeira said the club has been dealing with code violations for the past several weeks and continues to be fined until it returns to compliance.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe have kind of been dealing for the last few weeks with some code violations,\u201d Texeira said. \u201cAnd until we\u2019re in compliance, they\u2019re continuing to fine us.\u201d<\/p>\n
In a statement, the city of Sacramento said one of the requirements tied to the club\u2019s entertainment permit is having approved security guards in place anytime entertainment is provided. The city said establishments offering entertainment under Sacramento city code must have an entertainment permit and comply with both city rules and state requirements for security guards.<\/p>\n
Texeira acknowledged that a permit allowing in-house security had lapsed.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was an oversight on my part on a certain permit,\u201d Texeira said. \u201cIt allows me to have in-house security. And I let that lapse. Not intentionally. It was just an oversight. I am a small business owner. I kind of do all the things, and I missed it, and I own that.\u201d<\/p>\n
Still, she said the repeated fines are making it harder to stay afloat while she works through the process of getting back into compliance.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe process could take like two months,\u201d Texeira said. \u201cSo my concern was they\u2019re going to come every time we have music and fine me, which would just decimate me.\u201d<\/p>\n
Sacramento City Councilmember Phil Pluckebaum said the Torch Club contacted his office earlier this week, and a meeting is being arranged between city staff and the venue\u2019s ownership.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re pulling a meeting together tomorrow with City Code, the entertainment division, and then the ownership of the Torch to have a fuller discussion about what\u2019s working, what\u2019s not, and what we can do differently,\u201d Pluckebaum said.<\/p>\n
Pluckebaum said small businesses, especially entertainment venues, are already under pressure, and the city should look for ways to reduce burdens where possible.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe don\u2019t have many small venues like this left,\u201d Pluckebaum said. \u201cAnd we want to make sure that these are vibrant places for people to go and experience arts and culture and have a good time while they\u2019re doing it. We want to make sure that the businesses have every opportunity to be successful and profitable and thrive.\u201d<\/p>\n
In a statement to KCRA, the city said it is working with the Torch Club to resolve the compliance issues and emphasized that safety remains the priority.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe city recognizes that the Torch Club plays an important role in Sacramento\u2019s live music scene, but it is important for all businesses in Sacramento to operate safely,\u201d the statement said.<\/p>\n
Texeira said she hopes the meeting leads to a solution that allows the club to continue operating without the threat of mounting fines.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey want a lively downtown that\u2019s safe,\u201d Texeira said. \u201cAnd I totally get that. We are safe, and we are lively. So I would just like to work together so we can come to some agreement.\u201d<\/p>\n
Texeira did not provide a total dollar amount for the fines, but said she hopes the upcoming meeting with city officials will help keep the music playing.<\/p>\n
See more coverage of top California stories here<\/a> | Download our app<\/a> | Subscribe to our morning newsletter<\/a> | Find us on YouTube here and subscribe to our channel<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A Sacramento music landmark that has endured Prohibition, multiple moves, and decades of change is now confronting a…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":283363,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[32],"tags":[14852,387,1409,121653,4962,35666,121654,95253,967,15692,8425,9400,121655,16976,27524,28214,121,123,122,20305,3025,121652,121650,121651,19368],"class_list":{"0":"post-283362","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-sacramento","8":"tag-andres-valle","9":"tag-business","10":"tag-city","11":"tag-city-code-enforcement","12":"tag-city-of-sacramento","13":"tag-code-enforcement","14":"tag-code-violation","15":"tag-compliance","16":"tag-entertainment","17":"tag-fine","18":"tag-future","19":"tag-live-music","20":"tag-live-music-scene","21":"tag-meeting","22":"tag-music-venue","23":"tag-phil-pluckebaum","24":"tag-sacramento","25":"tag-sacramento-headlines","26":"tag-sacramento-news","27":"tag-security-guard","28":"tag-statement","29":"tag-texeira","30":"tag-torch-club","31":"tag-torch-club-owner","32":"tag-venue"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/283362","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=283362"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/283362\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/283363"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=283362"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=283362"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=283362"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}