Last Call at LaConcha

[Bobcat]

Last call for 'The Top' bar
BY GWEN FILOSA Citizen Staff
gfilosa@keysnews.com
It's last call on the seventh floor of La Concha Hotel, Key West.

You don't have to go home, but after Sunday you can no longer hang out at The Top bar, a longtime sunset-watching spot with a near-panoramic view. The bar is closing down to make way for a luxury spa.

Locals dismayed by the end of The Top era have organized gatherings for tonight and Saturday to bid farewell to the iconic nightspot.

The bar will be open Sunday evening, hotel staff said Thursday. But the live music portion of The Top wraps up for good with a show today.

Key West residents plan to hit The Top from 6 to 8 p.m. today with musician Al Subarsky scheduled to give one final performance atop the 1926-era hotel at 430 Duval St.

"The view from there is unlike anywhere in Key West," said Ralph DePalma, a photographer who plans to be among the last group of patrons at The Top. "They used to have bands up there and parties."

DePalma's recently published book, "The Soul of Key West, Vol. 1," contains interviews with 46 local musicians and reports that Key West is home to 51 venues with live music.

"We're down to 50 now once you close The Top," DePalma said.

While La Concha is a certified national historic site, the rooftop bar has only been around since the 1980s.

Designs to demolish the 4,200-square-foot rooftop bar and replace it with a six-room spa were first filed with the city in April 2013.

Several locals appeared at city government meetings, pleading for a reprieve for The Top. An online petition demanding the city save the bar gathered at least 1,300 signatures.

But the various board members and elected leaders pointed out to the critics that the hotel's owner, Spottswood Realty, is well within its rights to close the bar.

"We appreciate it," private planner Owen Trepanier said in response to the emotional protests. "The owners of this property want to move in a different direction."

gfilosa@keysnews.com

[Ratickle]

I've only been up there a couple times. It was a great view though.