If Tony Puesan could predict the future, he’d say when Gallaudet Pavilion, his new outdoor music venue, would open. Instead he can just cross his fingers and say he’d love to be open by the Fourth of July.
One thing is certain: it will be worth the wait.
Puesan is the owner and founder of the legendary HR-57 jazz club, which has moved from venue to venue across the city since its founding in 1993. (The last location for HR-57, on H Street,
closed last summer and Puesan is currently working on building a new location in Shaw.)
In the meantime, Puesan is working hard on Gallaudet Pavilion, on a lot owned by Gallaudet University and just north of Union Market. (Photos above.) It will be an outdoor music venue for not just jazz and blues but all musical genres. "Jazz under the moonlight—great," says Puesan. "Rock under the moonlight—great. God knows, we might even have a reggae festival."
The space, which Gallaudet is
allowing Puesan to use free of charge until it redevelops the property, will have room, he says, for over a thousand people on picnic blankets and lawn chairs, plus patio seating for 150. Food trucks will service the space and there may be a dedicated concession. There might even, he says, be a "5th Street Beach"—an area with sand trucked in and some volleyball nets.
Right now, Puesan says, he's working on certifications with the city. The minor renovations are mostly done—just landscaping and decorating, mostly—and it's a matter of passing the remaining inspections and certifications, including, yes, getting a liquor license to serve beer, wine, and spirits.
"The idea is to take all the cultures you find, all the people you come across, and make them part of your world to make your world a better space," Puesan says.
Gallaudet Pavilion will be open to the public most of the time, free of charge, except for ticketed concerts.