The story of DTLA’s gay bar renaissance begins with Precinct, and for Stephens and McIntire, it’s been an arduous journey just to open the bar’s doors. They first signed the lease in January 2014. Stephens describes the period that followed as “19 months of hell.” Zoning changes, traffic studies, sewer connections, sprinkler work and “a thousand little other horrible things along the way” pushed back the bar’s opening date—and caused temporary closures beyond the grand opening. (A spokesperson for Huizar’s office did estimate that the average time it takes for a new bar to open downtown is between one year and 18 months.)
Stephens says opening for business wasn’t just a goal; it was a necessity. “If we hadn’t opened when we did, we never would have opened. Two weeks later? This would never have happened,” he says.
It’s perhaps surprising to hear Stephens say that he holds City Hall in high esteem. Discussing the sprinkler work that recently necessitated the bar’s brief closure, Stephens says, “It’s one of the things that Eric Garcetti has just stepped up and kicked ass on. He and Ray Chan, the head of Building and Safety—both wanted to get rid of this rule that was created in the ‘80s, and they actually stepped in and said, ‘No, this is bullshit.’”
Stephens also says he feels Precinct wasn’t the only new business to suffer as a result of the lengthy, difficult process. “This is the process that is the City of L.A. Planning. We have dealt with people who I think were part of their issue, but the city overall has been very supportive. They’ve been 100% behind us. They come in and fix the problems,” he says, noting that Garcetti and Huizar are trying to change the process for the better.
Now Precinct is at long-last open, delivering a service to a neighborhood that sorely needed it. And he hopes to introduce a new generation of gays to a form of socializing they may not have experienced before.
“Throughout the ’80s and the ’90s, there were no smartphones. You went to a gay bar to meet guys,” Stephens says. “Now there’s a disconnect between the older guys and the younger guys, who have a completely different life experience. The younger ones don’t mind going to a straight bar to hang out. Personally, I’d rather die.”
He continues, “It’s important to bring these guys into the world of ‘This is a gay bar. This is what it means to have a bar full of men.’ And that will hopefully get them to go out more and experience something they maybe haven’t before.”
As Alpuche sees it, Redline is embracing history in a different way. “What everyone says about Downtown is that when you walk around, you look up and see all the great architectural details. These buildings are 100-plus years old,” he says. “We wanted to make sure that what we built matched. In our design, there’s a lot of elements from when that building was first built, to make sure it felt like Redline belonged in the building.”
Inside, patrons will find an industrial chic atmosphere. Alpuche and Beus chose Redline’s location so it would integrate with the neighborhood. Within a single block of Redline are seven locations where patrons can stop—to drink, grab a bite or shop—and Alpuche says this makes Redline feel like part of one connected downtown experience. “We wanted to be part of everything,” he says. “We wanted people to come over and go to Cole’s, have a French Dip, and then come over to Redline for a drink after.”
Just barely open, Redline hit the ground running and has just recently started advertising events. Alpuche acknowledges that the bar has benefitted from a shorter processing time than did Precinct—just 14 months. Overall, Alpuche says the city has welcomed Redline.
“LADP has been extremely supportive. City Hall has been extremely supportive. We’ve never encountered anyone that said, ‘That’s not going to work. We don’t want that here,’” he says. “It’s just been a tough process. But we did it! And we cannot be happier.”
Alpuche’s aim for Redline is to help re-create DTLA as a destination that evokes the feel of big urban centers elsewhere. “What’s happening down here is absolutely amazing, and we’ve noticed an influx of people coming from New York and wanting that big city feel. And that’s what Downtown has—only we also have the good weather. We have it all,” he says. “But before, it was hard to invite people to Downtown for the night. We always felt extremely comfortable at any of the restaurants here, but there’s something about having a gay bar,” he says.
Alpuche says he wants Redline to be a community asset. “We’re not just in it for the business. This was something Zach and I wanted to do—to create a space for the LGBT community.”
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