The Daily Pennsylvanian is a student-run nonprofit.

Please support us by disabling your ad blocker on our site.

The Rotunda, on the 4000 block of Walnut Street, may soon become the home of the indie music club 4040. (Jacques-Jean Tiziou/The Daily Pennsylvanian)

The alcohol-free indie-rock club 4040 will soon be leaving its namesake location behind. By Thanksgiving, the 4040 Locust Street music venue will permanently relocate to the Rotunda on Walnut and 40th streets, if all goes as University officials plan. According to Penn's top real estate official Tom Lussenhop, officials must double-check that the Rotunda can safely hold enough people and can easily evacuate in case of emergencies. Penn officials must also make sure 4040's concert schedule won't conflict with the plans of groups that currently use the Rotunda, such as the Foundation, a student-run, non-profit group that coordinates artistic and cultural events. A number of students on 40th and Locust streets have impatiently waited for the club to pack up and take away its loud music and concertgoers from the residential block since the alcohol-free music venue opened last spring. University officials originally planned on relocating 4040 by tomorrow. Lussenhop said he does not anticipate noise complaints from residents living near the Rotunda if the relocation goes through. "The Foundation and other performances [have been] there for the last year and a half, and I'm unaware of any significant complaints," he said. The Foundation has held concerts at the Rotunda, typically once a week, since last year. 4040 operator Sean Agnew believes the concrete walls of the Rotunda will insulate noise much more effectively than the windows and thin walls of the club's temporary building. According to Agnew, 4040 will run acoustic tests to measure decibel levels outside the building and take care of any problems before opening its doors, possibly by installing a sound-reducing curtain. A number of residents on the street said they don't expect 4040 to be too loud, adding that they've never had noise problems with the Foundation. "It doesn't really worry me," said College junior Paul Yakulis, who has lived in the Sigma Phi Epsilon house next to the Rotunda for over a year. Agnew said the Rotunda "would be an amazing place," remarking on the building's recess from the street. "It's much more conducive to [concertgoers] hanging out without getting in the way of neighbors or traffic," he said. At 4040's current location, several area residents have complained about concertgoers loitering in the street. According to Agnew, the last month has been 4040's "best month ever" with sold-out tickets for five of the last 10 shows. Agnew believes 4040 will not have problems coordinating its use of the Rotunda with the Foundation, which has fewer performances each month and usually sets its show dates far in advance. "We'd book around them," Agnew said. He expects 4040 to continue holding about 10 to 12 shows a month at its new location. Andrew Zitcer, the Foundation's co-director and staff advisor, agreed that the two organizations would work very well together because they share the goal of bringing music to the wider community beyond Penn in an alcohol-free setting. "We want to enhance both places rather than compete," Zitcer said. Agnew and Zitcer, who consider themselves friends, emphasized that 4040 and the Foundation will always be kept separate, although they hope to collaborate for some shows in the future. Agnew added that he would like to let student performance groups use the Rotunda for shows with the University's permission. He said he is also considering offering half-price tickets with a PennCard or free shows to attract more University students to 4040. But College sophomore Elyssa Fierstein, who lives two houses down from the Rotunda, doesn't think those measures will help draw more students. "If you're interested, you're already going to go. If not, [a lower price] is not going to make it any more enjoyable," she said. Agnew, who estimates that 4040 can relocate within a week of being notified, said the club will most likely change its name after it moves.

Comments powered by Disqus

Please note All comments are eligible for publication in The Daily Pennsylvanian.