The Jazz on View Society says its campaign to purchase Hermann鈥檚 Jazz Club has been hurt by a falling-out between management and nightclub staff.
Last month the nightclub鈥檚 former manager, who鈥檇 worked there for 15 years, resigned. As well, five staffers 鈥� some of them longtime employees 鈥� either resigned or were laid off. All were supporters of the Jazz on View Society.
鈥淔rankly, the situation now is distressing. Most of the amazing staff have either left or been forced to leave,鈥� wrote Bill Turner, president of the Jazz on View Society, in a message to supporters.
鈥淭hese circumstances are affecting our campaign, since we are not able to easily use the club as a venue to get the message out or even do media interviews on site,鈥� he wrote.
Jazz on View is a Victoria community group that signed an option to purchase the building containing Hermann鈥檚 Jazz Club for $3 million. The contract stipulates these funds must be raised by Oct. 31.
Hermann鈥檚 Jazz Club co-owner Ingrid Reid acknowledged the departure of staff. But she said it鈥檚 merely part of a revamp of club operations.
鈥淚t鈥檚 just business as usual. We can鈥檛 please everyone 鈥� . We鈥檙e just progressing and tightening things up,鈥� she said.
In recent weeks, two servers at Hermann鈥檚 were laid off. This was immediately followed by the resignations of the manager and three other staffers.
Reid said the two servers were dismissed partly because they didn鈥檛 鈥渋mmediately comply鈥� with a managerial directive. As well, business slows at the club during the summer.
鈥淭hey were upset by this. And then a couple [of other employees] left of their own accord,鈥� she said.
Reid says she and a new manager have made improvements to Hermann鈥檚. These include making operations more efficient, altering the menu and updating the decor. The club鈥檚 red walls have been repainted brown, and a memorabilia collection has been removed.
She said there are plans to open one of the building鈥檚 upstairs rooms 鈥� most recently a former Yuk Yuk鈥檚 Comedy Club 鈥� as an additional music venue.
Reid said the option-to-purchase agreement with Jazz on View will be honoured if the terms are met. However, changes were needed to make Hermann鈥檚 Jazz Club a viable business.
鈥淭he society has their opportunity. But in the meantime, that doesn鈥檛 mean we can sit back and wait. [The club] really needed something, and we still have to pay the bills,鈥� she said.
Reid and her brothers inherited the two-storey View Street brick building that houses Hermann鈥檚 Jazz Club from their father, Hermann Nieweler. He died in 2015 at the age of 79.
A landmark venue in this city 鈥� renowned for its red walls decorated with Nieweler鈥檚 collection of instruments and posters 鈥� Hermann鈥檚 Jazz Club is the longest continuously running jazz club in sa国际传媒.
Nichola Walkden is the club鈥檚 former manager and Jazz on View鈥檚 current secretary. She said she resigned last month 鈥渦nder duress鈥� because her position was being eroded and she wasn鈥檛 being offered shifts.
Walkden said Jazz on View can no longer host weekly information meetings at Hermann鈥檚 Jazz Club to solicit pledges and other support.
She can no longer give potential supporters tours of building鈥檚 upstairs rooms. As well, posters and brochures containing information on Jazz on View have been removed, she said.
In addition, rumours surrounding the layoffs and resignations 鈥� as well as changes to the club鈥檚 trademark decor 鈥� are causing confusion among existing and potential supporters of Jazz on View, Walkden said.
鈥淣ow we鈥檝e got this muddiness. It鈥檚 under new management.鈥�
Jazz on View, which aims to run Hermann鈥檚 Jazz Club as a non-profit enterprise, recently started a GoFundMe crowd-sourcing campaign with a goal of raising $30,000.
Another $300,000 has been pledged by potential lenders, as well as more than $100,000 in pledged donations, Turner said. (Pledges are being made via the Jazz on View Society鈥檚 website.)
Turner said while recent developments at Hermann鈥檚 Jazz Club make it 鈥渧ery hard for the campaign,鈥� the society will persevere.
鈥淲e are committed to moving forward with the option [to purchase] that we have. We just need the community support to put the deal together.鈥�