Article in today's paper about The Chart Room Bar

BY MANDY BOLEN

Citizen Staff

Concern and controversy has

rocked the usually alcohol-sedated

crowd that fills the Chart Room Bar

nightly.

Two bartenders were fired within

the past two weeks, and one left six

weeks ago in frustration.

“Every time they would try to do

something nice for the bar or for the

customers, they’d get shot down by the

management,” said Jean Thornton, a

longtime patron who shared drinks

and treasure salvaging stories with

the late Mel Fisher at the hole-in-thewall

bar that turns 40 next month.

The ancient emerald around her

neck catches what dim light is available

in the Chart Room, and people

still gather around to hear a good

story, even ones they know by heart.

But the good-natured crowd that

remembers a different Key West is

worried.

Change could be on the way, and

it may not bode well for the bar that

was Jimmy Buffett’s first Key West

stage, and one of many that supported

the gin-soaked leanings of

Tennessee Williams.

The regulars are hearing rumblings

that the bar’s days are numbered to

make way for a coffee shop, boutique

or sunglass shop.

Managers of the Pier House Resort

%26amp; Caribbean Spa, which houses the

Chart Room, have not confirmed

nor denied the rumors, and General

Manager Joy Smatt did not return

calls from The Citizen seeking comment.

Regulars at The Chart Room Bar fear the 40-year-old establishment may close.

The dedicated crowd of

Chart Room supporters is rallying.

Volunteers are circulating

a petition that doubles as

a letter to Smatt in support of

the bar that already boasts 200

signatures.

“The Chart Room Bar is a

truly unique and special part of

Key West’s charm and history

and is an enormous asset to

the Pier House Resort, and yet

it appears that current management

has been trying to do

everything possible to drive

Chart Room customers away

and find a reason to close it

down,” the letter states.

Housed in what used to be a

standard hotel room, the Chart

Room’s dim lights and dark

wood interior force the eyes to

adjust upon entry. The shadowy

figures eventually become

familiar faces. The giant peanut

barrel is to the right. The shells

go on the floor.

The hot dogs are just beyond

that, twisting on their metal

rods. But even the hot dogs

are in jeopardy. After the resort

stopped paying for the hot

dogs, the former bartenders

provided them, Thornton said.

One bartender made an outdoor

seating area for guests

who did not relish secondhand

smoke. But management said

that had to go, Thornton said.

“It’s just such a neat, friendly

place, and so many things have

already been swept away by

development,” she said. “We’re

just trying to get recognition

and support from the administration

to realize how important

this place is.”

And the support is not a

newfound sentiment. In 1998,

on the eve of the Chart Room’s

30th birthday, Rosie von Engel

summed up her nostalgia for

the dark carnival in a Solares

Hill tribute:

We have seen more than we

ever wanted of the paving of

paradise. Put up that parking

lot and you’ll end up looking

at pictures of places you wish

were still there, times you’d give

anything not to have lost.

We are the keepers who protect

the heart. Truly, with no

need to boast, the Chart Room is

one of the last pieces of the soul

of Key West. Pray she still exists

the next time you need her.

To sign the petition, e-mail

kwchartroom@hotmail.com

Article in today's paper about The Chart Room Bar

opps !! Sorry Arnie, I didn%26#39;t see your post 1st before I posted the same thing.

I%26#39;ve signed it and hope everyone here on TA does the same thing.:)

Article in today's paper about The Chart Room Bar

I signed it too. I hope everyone does.

Man, what idiots...some corporate honcho would rather sell sunglasses than let a revered piece of KW history (AND a fun bar) go. The Fort Lauderdalisation of KW continues.

PS

I think everyone should make a concerted effort to hit the Chart Room, especially en masse. Say, on a weekly basis.

And yet, they%26#39;re hiring for the Chart Room.

I could only dream that if ever a rumor forms about my bosses wanting to close our bar, that it causes such anguish within the community that petitons get formed and signed, and it makes the front page of the Sunday paper!

And then gets blogged about all over the internet.

In other news, newly unemployeed bartender Dave Crooks is looking for a job. Snatch him up as quickly as you can.

Al Nelson

Unfreakinbelievable! As someone who only gets to KW twice a year, it%26#39;s painful to watch the corporate erosion of our favorite island. It seems so much more pronounced when you%26#39;re not there on a daily basis. I%26#39;m just praying that the next time I walk through the Pier House and go through those doors, I%26#39;m not greeted by some teenager hawking oakleys and lattes! Thanks for the info Arnie.

Sadly, alot of old Key West is being destroyed by bits and pieces (all in the name of progress, of course). That being said, get to Key West and experience what%26#39;s still left.

I am really curious how this will play out. The Chart Room has so much history behind it and its a cool little bar. Last month when I was in Key West I visited it and the bartender showed me a list of all the people who have bartended there over the years. I was surprised how many ';famous'; locals poured a drink or two in that fine establishment.

I say we go down for a drink Arnie when I%26#39;m in town next=)