By Jeremy Walsh
Staffers at CB 1 said the applicant, Sediray Corp., pulled the application two days before the meeting, saying the process was taking too long. The board received a letter stating the applicant was abandoning plans to reopen the shuttered site, staff said.Located at 62-05 30th Ave., just off the BQE, Club Phenomenon was the site of numerous crimes in recent years, including three fatal shootings.In May a jury convicted Brooklyn resident Moises Valerio of the 2004 murder of Francisco Rosa, an off-duty court officer working as a bouncer outside the bar.In November 2006, undercover police arrested two men on drug-related charges and three women on prostitution charges, the State Liquor Authority said. Woodside resident Ernesto Salgado Jr., 22, was killed outside the club on Oct. 1, 2006, and David Garcia, 23, was gunned down on Nov. 22, 2003.City Councilman Eric Gioia (D-Sunnyside) put forward a petition to revoke the club's liquor license in December 2006. The authority revoked the license at the end of that month, closing down the bar.City Councilman Peter Vallone (D-Astoria), whose district includes the former Club Phenomenon, said his office constantly receives calls from constituents complaining about rowdy bar patrons. He said that although he and Inspector Brian McCarthy from the 114th Precinct often meet with bar owners, who are usually eager to implement the changes they suggest.”I think Astoria is becoming a destination, and I think that's a good thing for the neighborhood,” he said. “But it clearly presents some issues that we need to continue to focus on.”Vallone also said he never met with the owner of Club Phenomenon.”That's not one that ever seemed like it was salvageable,” he said. “It's also not a place that's surrounded by residents, so you probably don't hear about problems until they're in the paper.”Reach reporter Jeremy Walsh by e-mail at jwalsh@timesledger.com or by phone at 718-229-0300, Ext. 154.
