It's true, the recession is hitting everyone - including the always-lucrative, celebrity hotspot, Privé and it's posh sister lounge, The Living Room - both located in the Planet Hollywood Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas. This Wednesday, the nightclub's owners filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in Southern Florida where Opium Group, the club's parent company is based.
Troubles for the nightclub were sparked earlier this year when both Privé and The Living Room were forced to close after breaking the rules set forth in their liquor liscence. The Las Vegas Gaming Control Board fined Planet Hollywood Hotel & Casino $750,000 for nine complaints against Privé, which included serving alcohol to minors, serving too much alcohol to guests and allowing drug use within the club.
The board set 11 conditions for the club to follow to get back on track, and Privé did as they were told. After implementing a new management team, allowing police to enter the club and reporting all serious incidents within 24 hours, Privé and The Living Room were granted a 90-day temporary liquor license about a month ago. However, the club's owners were still face-to-face with a huge financial problem.
Privé listed $50,000 in assets, compared to the $1 million to $10 million in liabilities owed to Las Vegas' ADT Construction ($1.6 million) Sun City Electric of Las Vegas ($844,000), and William Richardson of Las Vegas ($1.6 million) among others. But despite the financial issues and the LVPD's investigation of The Opium Group (which could take as much as 18 months to complete), Privé owners refuse to shut the club down. According to a ruling last Thursday, employees are still reveiving pay and benefits and intentions are to keep the club running as per usual.
