When the owner of a south Madison night club announced its impending closure earlier this month, he experienced an unexpected outpouring of community support to try and keep the nightclub open.
Five Nightclub has been serving Madison’s lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community since 1998. Dave Eick, the owner of Five Nightclub, recently announced that the nightclub could no longer continue to cover expenses and would likely close the weekend of April 26.
After construction in 2013 made it more difficult for customers to get to the building, Five Nightclub’s sales suffered major losses for nearly eight months, Eick said. The nightclub was behind on rent and bills.
As Eick faced a rent increase this summer, he believed that the nightclub would not be able to gain back enough of the lost money to continue business, despite a regular crowd of loyal customers, he said.
“It’s home. That’s what this place is to a lot of people,” Eick said.
Members of the community immediately began reaching out to Eick and Five Nightclub with donations to help the business. They also shared personal stories detailing what Five meant to them, Eick said.
For many people, it’s where they met their friends or partners, he said.
Social media has played a central role in the changing LGBT bar scene in Madison, Eick said. Online dating applications have taken the place of bars for straight people and members of the LGBT community alike, he said.
“People don’t go to bars to meet people anymore. They just strike up a conversation online,” Eick said.
Historically, the LGBT nightlife culture was focused on finding places that were safe for members of the community, Jason Rae, executive director of the Wisconsin LGBT Chamber of Commerce, said. The use of the internet as a new safe space for meeting people has been detrimental to many Wisconsin LGBT nightlife establishments, he said.
LGBT bars in the Madison area have been effected by this shift in dating culture, along with an increased acceptance of LGBT folks by the larger community, Eick said.
People within the LGBT community are starting to feel more accepted by the larger community, which is making LGBT-focused bars less popular, Eick said. Many bars that were previously “gay bars” are becoming popular for all members of the broader community, he said.
“As LGBT acceptance and inclusion is happening more and more, people aren’t necessarily choosing specific LGBT establishments, but really looking at places to visit that share their similar values,” Rae said.
LGBT people frequently want to support businesses that are willing to publicly endorse inclusion and diversity, Rae said. Eick has worked to build this support and foster a strong sense of community among those who visit, he said.
Fundraisers are held regularly for causes that various customers are involved in. This dedication to building a strong community surrounding the nightclub helped to change the announcement of impending closure to just a possibility.
With the help of the local community, as well as past visitors to Five Nightclub, over $31,000 has been raised to benefit the business, according to the Five Nightclub website.
“When I first walked into this building, I felt comfortable,” Eick said. “I want to keep giving others that same experience.”
