Worried about rowdy crowds, a downtown Anchorage group is opposing LED Ultra Lounge's plan to relocate

Feb. 24—Business owners and residents in downtown Anchorage are trying to stop the owner of a now-closed nightclub from moving his business and liquor licenses to a new spot, where it will be closer to more tourists and residents.

Robert Alexander, who owns the former LED Ultra Lounge and Grill, wants to transfer his licenses and relocate the business to a new site across from the Hilton Anchorage at the corner of Third Avenue and E Street.

Opponents of the move are calling on the Downtown Community Council to oppose the license transfer in hopes that the city and state will not allow the business to relocate there. They recently formed the Downtown Coalition of Concerned Citizens to stop it, said Russ Reno, a member of the group and owner of Anchorage Downtown TourGroup, providing tours around Anchorage.

"We don't want tourists who will be woken up at 11 p.m. when people start partying there and making noise," Reno said.

Members of the group introduced a resolution to the council that says shootings, drug use, public urination and other problems happened in close proximity to the LED lounge, which operated until 3 a.m. on weekend nights. Some people are also concerned about Alexander's previous run-ins with the law; there is currently a felony case against him that could affect his licenses.

Alexander denies many of the allegations in a counter resolution to the council, and says he's confident he won't be convicted in the case.

The LED Ultra Lounge closed last year after seven years in operation at its previous site, Sixth Avenue and I Street, near the Hotel Captain Cook. The closure came because a new owner, Bean's Cafe, purchased the building that houses it, Alexander said in an interview.

Alexander said he took pains to run LED lounge safely and cleanly, including shooing away patrons and cleaning parking lots himself each closing time.

Alexander, a military veteran who moved to Anchorage in 1986, asserted that he feels like he's being unfairly targeted. Other bars have also had problems outside their doors, but have faced less scrutiny from the downtown council, he said.

The new spot could feature a DJ and live music, possibly every night, from 11 p.m. to 3 a.m., the applications say. Alexander also plans to reopen the Tri-Grill restaurant that operated for a couple of years at the previous location, so the LED lounge attracts a broad clientele, he said.

Alexander said he plans to take extra precautions to make sure he's a good neighbor. He plans to control noise, employ more security guards, up from the nine at the old LED lounge, and install a metal detector to stop weapons at the door.

Bob Neumann, who owns the 26-room Historic Anchorage Hotel across the street from the proposed site, said a nightclub will be a problem in the area.

He previously owned Rumrunners Old Towne Bar and Grill, a former nightclub at 4th Avenue and E Street, before selling it to Anchorage restaurateurs Abraham and Basilio Gallo about 15 years ago, he said. Nightclub patrons are a tough crowd to control, Neumann said.

A bar won't mix well with guests from the Hilton Anchorage, which has 600 rooms, and the nearby Turnagain Arm Condo building, with many residents, Neumann said.

"It's going to be trouble," Neumann said. "It's going to be sleeping guests waking up in the middle of the night. It's going to be squealing rubber heading out of the parking lot."

Alexander applied last month with the Alcohol and Marijuana Control Office to transfer two liquor licenses for the LED Ultra Lounge and Grill. The Downtown Community Council plans to meet March 9 to consider making a recommendation about the transfer to the Alcoholic Beverage Control Board, as well as the Anchorage Assembly, which must consider a special land-use permit for the move.

Mike Ward, co-owner of the Pioneer Bar downtown and vice president of the Downtown Community Council, said the council wants to support all downtown businesses, including bars that operate responsibly. He said he hasn't taken a personal position on the LED Lounge proposal.

"I'd like to think that moving to new location, that he can run a responsible business," he said.

Chris Constant, the Assembly member for downtown, said a key element of the dispute is that the Lounge generated an unusual number of complaints at its previous location, though few residents and businesses were directly nearby. There will be a greater chance for complaints in this new area, said Constant, who said he hasn't taken a position on the transfer.

The LED lounge hasn't received any violations from the Alcoholic and Marijuana Control Office, an investigator at the state agency said.

Police received about 50 calls annually, on average, associated with the LED lounge address during its life, according to figures from the Anchorage Police Department. The LED lounge may not have been involved in each call, according to Renee Oistad, a spokeswoman with the police department — a call for a disturbance outside the establishment, or a nearby traffic stop, could have been reported at the address.

The calls were highest in 2019, with 101 calls. They were slowest in 2020, with a dozen calls, as pandemic-related restrictions limited capacity and operations at bars.

Alexander said he made many of those calls himself, and should not be penalized for doing so.

Bridget Sanders runs a small vacation rental business in a building near the former LED lounge. She said she is not a member of the group opposing the move, and she hopes that Alexander can keep his business alive in Anchorage.

But downtown, with its tourists, is not the right place for the bar, she said.

When LED was open, Sanders' guests often complained that they were awoken by people screaming and fighting outside the lounge, she said.

"So many beer bottles and cans would end up in my yard," she said. "And my guests would say the bass was so loud it rattled the windows on the house."

When the LED Lounge advertised big events, she turned away business because she knew guests would get no sleep, she said.

Alexander acknowledges in his resolution that a few shootings took place near the former LED Lounge. But one involved a person from another bar, shooting bullets into the air. Another happened a block from the LED Lounge, not inside as was initially reported by police and media, he said.

Alexander faces a felony charge in a case that could affect his liquor license, according to state court records. The state has charged him with first-degree assault with a serious injury involving a weapon, after he shot a man in 2019 who had entered the boarded-up Big Timber Hotel in East Anchorage.

Alexander's wife owns the hotel, he said in an interview. He said he entered the building because it was clear it had been broken into. The door was busted open, Alexander said, and the man threw something at him. Alexander shot him.

If Alexander is found guilty in the case he could lose his liquor license, according to state law.

Alexander said he's confident he won't be found guilty. He declined to say why.

"I'm not gonna lose," he said in a text.