The Cactus Club in north Salisbury will be closing their doors for good tonight. They did not renew their liquor license and we will see yet another business close their doors for good. While some might see this as a good thing, no matter what is said, the economy is taking its toll on the shore as times just continue to get tougher.
I know, lets give the Daily Times ANOTHER $400,000.00 CITY tax cut while they too go from 200 employees down to 15, move their printing to Wilmington, DE. and depress the local economy. That number does NOT include the tax breaks they got from the County as well.
Thanks Louise, Gary and Shanie. More importantly, thanks Paul Wilber for not speaking the TRUTH at the City Council Meeting 11 days ago. Wilber stated the tax break was mandatory and that is NOT the truth.
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35 comments:
Good, The Cactus Club was nothing but a blight on the city of Salisbury. Good riddance!
That was a nice place when it first opened. The owners were nice and it was a place you could go for a good time.
Then, the local rednecks and drunks started taking over. Nicer people stopped going. The dregs increased. Finally that's all that went there.
I stopped going a long time ago when they put in a metal detector. Talk about a red flag.
That place is cursed anyway. Before it was wagon wheel. That turned into a dump too.
I think Salina and Frank kept a high cover charge to try and keep the riff raff out, but looks like it didn't work.
There never will be a nice place to go out around here. People ruin it.
Unfortunatly the economy really has hurt local businesses. Not enough people are able to go out to these nightclubs. To speak the truth, the people who have not really been affected by the economy are drug dealers and welfare. Go to Brew River, green turtle, club blue, and the Cactus club tonight and see what is there. This is not racial. It's just a fact. Next on the list will be lagoon's. But hopefully they are aware of the problems that could come there way. Other than Lagoons right now where can you go in Salisbury for drinks and dancing and not worry about violence?
Why is Wilber still the City Attorney?!
This place has been opened since the 1950's. Not that I would visit but we need to be concerned that another business has bit the dust during this economic downturn.
Guess they should have paid the bands what they were promised and stopped ripping them off whenever Frank got the chance.
I see the City Council is going to take up the city attorney's $400,000 screw up on Monday.
Whoa, back that train up Anon 7:57! The bands were not forced to play there. Just like any other employee, if they wanted the job bad enough they would accept the pay they were offered. It's about business, not charity. I am proud to call Frank and Salina friends!
9:41 when you're promised $650 and you end up with $500 at the end of the night that's not good business and, that is why most bands quit playing there..Period. Don't speak of things you have not been subjected to. Every band in the area has been taken to the cleaners by the Cactus. Just ask around if you think I am lying.
I'm glad to see cactus go about 2 years ago it became a very dangerous place to be fights gun fire and the worst part the owner allowed illegal drug sales in the men's bathroom while he had his security watch the door. Frank would pocket 50.oo for each deal. We have many memories there especially Joann the bartender of many years.without her and many more im not sure how that place would have not survived as long as it did. Its said to watch it go but if we could rewind about 4 years ago to before it would be great. Rip cactus shout out to many security Tommy Brian Lindsay Worm Eric Richard Jason and Shaggy and if course Kelley. Thanks for making it memorable.
Anonymous said...
Why is Wilber still the City Attorney?!
6:44 PM
Because Jim Ireton is a spineless PUNK!!
Why is John Pick still the city administrator?
Why is Lore Chambers still the assistant city administrator?
Why is Jeff Simpson still the fire chief?
Because Jim Ireton is a spineless PUNK!!
$650??
Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha! Must have been a low life band to want to play for that chicken feed and have to pay everybody for the evening. What does that come to, about $15 and hour?
10:55 Have you ever played in a band in this area? I doubt it because if you had, you know the band never makes anything when you account for overhead expenses like; equipment purchases, , PA rental, fuel to get to the gig, general road expenses, etc. $15 an hour??? I WISH! I don't care where you play in this area, you will not make money. Thanks for insulting every local musician you TWIT. Never played the Cactus myself but, if you are part of the Management?; I never will. BTW...most musicians do this for the love of music and a little, "promised" compensation to offset the bills for doing so.
I have to laugh while reading the crap you so called know it all's have to say about the cactus club. I've known the owners for years and they are the people you want as friends! I've been behind the bar ,at the door, and side by side with them at darts, pool, parties, and final farwells to friends that passed on and I will say with all that I AM all the kickback BS and looking the other way is insulting to anyone who knows them!!! As far as band fees go, when a band starts the night at 650 and they bring 2 tables of girlfriends/wives and charge drinks to there tab and shots between sets and beer all night. Then by the 3rd set the bands are half drunk and sound awful and expect full payment, what would you people do?
a club is only as good as the entertainment it provides, my husband and I love Station 7 in Pittsville. They always have good entertainment and no riff-raff.
now all the trash that goes there will be showing up ay the nice places around town.
Tommy Leggs worked there he use to go out with the fat bartender bobbi jo wonderful place it was
I loved the Cactus Club...Me and my girls had some very memorable moments there...Of course this was years ago, but very memorable..Thank you Cactus Club for those memories...
Might be more about the music and the chicks than the money, eh? The place was dangerous at closing time.
10:55, $15 an hour is not bad money around here. It is considered good pay especially if you work for the county. Not sure about private sector.
9:53, My apologies to you. I do not have knowledge of that part, just the part where bands demanded a higher amount than Frank offered. No disrespect to you.
I remember when the Wagon Wheel, along with the Northwood Bar was the place to go for dancing, etc. I worked there for Calvin Pusey and along with Bird dog Lang, we served many a beer and broke up a few scraps. Marion "Buddy" Barkely was a super waiter there and the night my wife and I got married (July 24th, 1959) Calvin Pusey had a party for us following the reception at the church. He had champagne, tablecloths on our table and we had a great time. Had some great entertainment there at times I seem to remember Dee Clark played there one time. Ah, the good old days jackkcharl@aol.com
Glad it's closing, I'm too young to ever remember it being anything other than a sh** dive. Salisbury is better off without such an establishment.
12:51 am. I too am a fomer employee of Cactus and I totally agree with you.
12:51
I whole heartedly agree with the
2nd half of your comment (1st half I know nothing about since I have never been to the cactus club).
I would say that 95% of the local bands that I have heard are not worth the $500 they beg for. Sure they all start off ok but by the
2nd and 3rd sets they are so drunk they don't give a hoot about anything. It does not really matter because usually by the end of the 1st set most people get up and leave because they take a 45 minute break. Is it all the fault of the band? ....NO.... I place the majority of the blame on the establishment for not setting better ground rules from the start. 1st rule is no drinking while on the clock... I don't allow any other employees to drink while they are on the clock so why should you be any different....... Rule #2 is a maximum break of 15 minutes between sets. If the people coming in to listen to the band wanted to hear the radio for 45 minutes to an hour I would just put a $20 bill in the jukebox and tell them to have at it.
ALso I am paying you to play so don't ask for a tab for you or your party train, groupies or family. My last gripe with the bands for now is that most of them play way to loud.... when you tell them to turn it down a notch they come up with some excuse as to why they can't when the real reasaon they have it cranked up so loud is it helps cover their mistakes and lack of lead vocals. The only (semi) local band I have seen that plays at a volume that you can still have a conversation without screaming is Tommy Edward.
Front Page News is one of the worst ones for cranking it up to cover it up
Just my opinion..........
10:52, real tough guy behind your anonymous
Frank and Salina and most of the employees,(the ones I knew in the past),are ok in my book.
It's not the owners who created the s---hole, as one put it, it's the clientèle.
And I'm sure everyone knows what clientele I refer to. Glad I stopped going there when I did. Most of my memories from that place are good.
12:55 Boy do I agree with you about the loudness of some bands. Bruce Willey, who played some great music was FAMOUS for his noise. He played for me quite often and the customers would constantly complain and when I would ask him to turn it down he refused to do so for some reason. Several that hired him had the same complaint. I think if someone is paying a band they should play at the volume that is requested especially when the paying customers are complaining. Never understood., jackkcharl@aol.com
Funny how people blame the economy right away. I bet if you ask frank, most days his Keno andlottery sales are as high or higher than ever, of which the state gets 97%. I've been in bars like this where a customer spends $8 on beer and $80 on Keno every single day. Its frustrating to owners.
Jack
It all boils down to the fact that they have to play it loud or no one would hire them to begin with. The ear shattering volume has to be maintained so you notice the horrible vocals and missed or wrong cords.
Hevean forbid you ask some of them to play some different music..... it is like a deer in the headlight stare.LOL
Thats why I have gone to DJ's and Karaoke for the most part.... no breaks, no drunks working and always a dance crowd on the floor because the DJ is better equipped to be able to adapt to the crowd.....and when I ask them to turn it up or down they comply without a big head swell.
Frank did not allow drug deals in the bathroom and he did not pocket 50.00 for each deal...STOP SPREADING STUPID RUMORS.My band has played there several times and he pays what he agreed on.The Cactus pays more than Breaktime.
every club in town has problems they just aren't put out there. if u knew salina & frank u know the truth. i worked there a few years & it wasn't bad. if your out drinking any where and u bump into someone there is always going to b a problem. NO MATTER WHERE YOU ARE!!!! going to miss everyone there that mattered.
The place was a crap hole and I'm glad it is gone. Hopefully it will be bulldozed to the ground.
DJ 7 was smoking weed outside!
12:51, I typically do not respond to comments made by persons that make uneducated comments, but as your comments are directed at all local musicians I feel compelled to enlighten you in a couple of areas. #1 A bands worth to a bar is relevant to the size of their following. How good a band is, is judged by many not based upon one opinion alone. The bars want the people that follow the band; hence the better a band is, the larger their following, making them worth more money. Fortunately, you do not determine their worth. #2 The beauty of live music is you hear all of the mistakes and the vocals are raw. If you don't like mistakes, don't listen to live bands. #3 The volume of the drums on stage dictates the volume of the band. The other instruments and vocals must be set to a volume that they can hear themselves above the drums. If the other musicians cannot hear themselves they make mistakes. Turning the volume way down makes it impossible for the other instruments to hear themselves, creating mistakes. To insinuate that cranking it up covers mistakes is contrary to the truth. If it's too loud for you, leave. #4 Some bars extend a tab to the bands, others do not, it is the bar owners discretion. It really is not your business. #5 You have the option of patronizing a bar that doesn't have live music if you so choose. Please do. #6 I don't know of any band that schedules 45 minute breaks, 30 minutes is the norm. Again, if you don't like it leave.
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