Halo (bar)

Halo in 2006 in Washington, D.C.

Halo was a high end gay bar located at 1435 P Street, NW in the Logan Circle neighborhood of Washington, D.C., United States. Founded in 2004 by Ed Bailey and John Guggenmos, Halo first gained attention by being one of the few smoke-free LGBT bars in Washington, D.C. before the citywide smoking ban was enacted in January 2007.[1][2] Bailey and Guggenmos previously started other Washington, D.C. LGBT clubs and events including the Velvet Nation party at Nation, Tracks, Millennium at the 9:30 Club, Ozone, and Cobalt.[1] In 2007, Bailey and Guggenmos sold their remaining share of Halo to Babak Movahedi and opened Town Danceboutique on U Street, NW.[3][4]

Halo's location is a narrow, two-story building that originally served as an automobile repair shop. When the bar opened in 2004, only the second floor was used by Halo and it consisted of 1,500 square feet (139 sq m).[1] In September 2005, the first floor of Halo opened bringing the total amount of space to approximately 3,000 sq ft (278 sq m) with a capacity for 200 people.[5] Halo's interior design by Greg Keffer of Studios Architecture is influenced by the Art Deco movement. The bar features curved ceilings, white walls, blue and purple accent lighting, silver bar stools, and winding banquettes.[6] In August 2008, the second floor underwent a $200,000 renovation designed by Paolo Zavala of VOA Associates Incorporated that was described as retro-futuristic and compared to scenes from Stanley Kubrick's movie, A Clockwork Orange.[7] The reopening of the second floor bar took place on September 5, 2008, and included a ribbon cutting ceremony by Mayor Adrian Fenty.[7]

Halo closed in early 2010, and was replaced by Mova Lounge. Mova Lounge declared bankruptcy in October 2010.[8] Mova Lounge closed in December 2012. The space was radically renovated (removing much of its modernist look) and occupied by Number Nine in early 2011. The new bar caters to a wider range of customers than Halo or Mova Lounge, although most of its clientele is still primarily gay men.[9]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 Hahn, Fritz (2004-09-24). "The Halo Effect". The Washington Post. Retrieved 2008-05-11.
  2. ↑ Weiss, Eric (2006-01-05). "D.C. Smoking Ban Approved". The Washington Post. Retrieved 2008-05-11.
  3. ↑ Najafi, Yusef (2007-07-26). "A popular gay bar changes owners". Metro Weekly. Retrieved 2008-05-11.
  4. ↑ Najafi, Yusef (2007-08-09). "Going to town". Metro Weekly. Retrieved 2008-05-11.
  5. ↑ Moylan, Brian (2005-09-23). "I like the nightlife". Washington Blade. Archived from the original on 2008-06-14. Retrieved 2008-05-11.
  6. ↑ Moylan, Brian (2004-08-06). "Halo lounges on cloud nine". Washington Blade. Archived from the original on 2008-06-14. Retrieved 2008-05-11.
  7. 1 2 DiGuglielmo, Joey (2008-09-05). "Halo’s new glow: Four-year-old P Street bar gets $200K renovation". Washington Blade. Retrieved 2009-06-18.
  8. ↑ Geidner, Chris. "Mova Files for Bankruptcy." Metro Weekly. October 21, 2010. Accessed 2012-09-07.
  9. ↑ Han, Fritz. "Favoring the Tried-and-True Over Trends." Washington Post. August 5, 2011. Accessed 2012-09-07.

External links

Coordinates: 38°54′35″N 77°02′00″W / 38.909671°N 77.03339°W / 38.909671; -77.03339

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