{"id":466225,"date":"2026-09-17T01:38:14","date_gmt":"2026-09-17T01:38:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/466225\/"},"modified":"2026-09-17T01:38:14","modified_gmt":"2026-09-17T01:38:14","slug":"elis-mile-high-club-announces-closure","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/466225\/","title":{"rendered":"Eli\u2019s Mile High Club announces closure"},"content":{"rendered":"

Eli\u2019s Mile High Club<\/a>, the famed bar and music venue known for its blues nights and live shows, is closing its doors at the end of October.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cWe will be working hard to reopen, but your continuous support would help us keep going,\u201d read the announcement on social media<\/a>, posted on Wednesday, Sept. 16.<\/p>\n

The reason why the bar is closing isn\u2019t clear. But in the same post, the bar\u2019s management appealed to people to contact the City Council and mayor\u2019s office. Eli\u2019s has had trouble with permitting issues related to its patio for several years.<\/p>\n

The historic North Oakland venue, opened in 1974 by Eli Thornton, served as the home for West Coast blues music scene<\/a> after other venues in West Oakland shuttered, giving way to the construction of BART, the 7th Street post office, I-980, and other disruptive urban renewal projects.<\/p>\n

Wilbert \u201cCowboy\u201d Freeman McAlister, the former president of the Oakland Black Cowboys Association, has been a staple at blues nights<\/a>, often performing his band, Cowboy and His Sometimes Blues.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

The legendary venue had a string of controversies. In 1979, Eli Thornton was shot and killed<\/a> while working behind the bar by his girlfriend Frankie Williams. The venue went through various ownership changes throughout the decades, even shutting down from 2008 to 2011.\u00a0<\/p>\n

In 2016, Eli\u2019s was bought by a new ownership group that included Matt Patane, who continues to be the primary owner.<\/p>\n

Patane did not respond to a request for more information. The City of Oakland also did not immediately respond to a request for comment.<\/p>\n

\"\"The patio at Eli\u2019s Mile High Club in Oakland. Credit: Sarah Han\/East Bay NOSH<\/p>\n

In 2021, Eli\u2019s made headlines<\/a> for being one of the first bars to require proof of COVID vaccination to get into the bar\u2019s back patio.\u00a0<\/p>\n

That same patio got the venue in trouble when a nearby neighbor began filing complaints in 2022, according to public records<\/a>. In 2024, the city forced Eli\u2019s to shutter the patio due to lack of proper permitting.<\/p>\n

Patane has been trying to reopen the patio since then. In March of 2025, Patane told KQED<\/a> that the venue was looking for \u201cany pro bono legal aid\u201d willing to help. He also launched a $150,000 GoFundMe<\/a> to help pay for \u201czoning, permitting, and the restructure of the patio according to the city request.\u201d As of today, the campaign has raised $77,000.\u00a0<\/p>\n

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