City concert scene loses two venues

By LAURA JERPI

Starting in August, students will be able to live in Club Laga and the Attic.

Ron Levick,… Starting in August, students will be able to live in Club Laga and the Attic.

Ron Levick, owner of the two Oakland hotspots, has decided to close the clubs and turn them into apartments. Levick has owned The Attic since 1992 and Club Laga since 1996.

“The concert scene in the city has died,” he said.

Levick said he built apartments in the vacant space because the location is great for college students. Tenants will have businesses such as the Golden Palace Buffet and the Oakland Oasis readily available to them, located on the first floor of their building.

The building will house 20 three-bedroom apartments. They range in size from 1,000 to 1,200 square feet. Each apartment will have central heat and air conditioning.

Approximately half of the apartments are still open for rent, according to Levick.

With the closing of Club Laga and The Attic, some students are upset because they feel that they have lost a great place to see live music.

“It’s sad to see a small local venue like that close, falling as another victim to Clear Channel,” sophomore Jesse Rosenthal said, referring to the entertainment industry giant. “Now I have to schlep all the way to the Post-Gazette Pavilion, and get ripped off in the process, to see my favorite artists.”