the end of burnt ramen

[Guest guest]

it won't mean anything to you all...but, this is the place i put on a few shows, hung out at, worked the door occassionally

*sigh*

this e-mail is from one of the owners of the building....

ok..off to LA..

fraggle

 

"Myk Ramen" <burntramen

Burnt Ramen Shut Down

 

Wednesday morning I was driving back from Chico. I had spent the night

crashed out in a rest stop on route 5. That morning I woke up and

drove the rest of the way home. I got prepared to meet the Richmond

Fire Marshall. He was almost an hour late. During the inspection, he

brought up most of what I thought he would. There needed to be fire

extinguishers around, the doors should open out and we needed

illuminated EXIT signs. There would also have to be ¾? sheet rock on

the ceiling and an occupancy rating (most likely 100). I pointed out

to the inspector that there was absolutely nothing to do in Richmond.

That?s why we started having shows at Burnt Ramen in the first place.

When John the Baker got back we talked about meeting the

requirements. It didn?t seem out of reach. It?s only when the city

starts requiring all sorts of permits, licenses and certifications...

there can be no end of it. The truth is ALL AGES VENUES DO NOT MAKE

MONEY. That?s why it?s not worth being legal. Our system does not

consider it valuable to provide kids with a place where they can

gather to socalize and listen to music. Yet it?s considered a high

priority to launch an expensive war aimed at killing the peoples of a

third world country. Also, make sure you tell everyone to oppose the

RAVE act. It will effectively shut down underground music clubs

everywhere.

There was a show scheduled that Wednesday night. I talked with Mike

OL/Strung Up/Hot Plate. He said that there were likely to be fights

and a lot of drunken idiots from out of the area. John the Baker and

I discused it and then called off the show. We also cancelled the

show for Sunday. Mike OL/SU/HP was able to move Sunday?s show to

Rooster?s (Alameda).

Later that night, some kids showed up outside the warehouse. They were

waiting for the doors to open. I was out on the roof when I heard

someone jiggling the lock to the back gate. I looked over the side.

There were some cops standing on the outside stairway. A short cop

shined his flashlight up on me. ?Do you have a permit?? he yelled. ?A

permit for what?? I asked. ?Where?s the property owner?? he bellowed.

?I?m the owner,? I said. ?Well, I need to ask you some questions,?

he said.? ?Ok, go ahead.? I replied. ?You need to come down here so

I can ask you the questions,? he corrected.

Walking out the door, I closed it behind me and went to where the

inquisitor was still standing by the steps. I prepared myself

mentally to have cuffs slapped on my hands, the worst case scenario.

He asked again if I had a permit. Again I replied, ?A permit for

what?? They must have thought a show was going on. Then he went on

for a while about graffitti and the city fining me for painting the

outside of the building. ?They never charged me before for painting,?

I told him. ?That?s because we couldn?t get a hold of you,? he said.

It was then I saw he didn?t know what he was talking about. I had

called the graffitti line the day before. He didn?t know who the Fire

Marshall was that inspected the property. There was a tall older well

dressed gentleman there who seemed to be in charge. The only time

I?ve seen cops behave belligerently in Richmond was when someone was

jerking their chain. We found out the city council had discussed the

place. It was becoming clear that there was pressure from above to

shut down the music. The bulldog cop asked John and I what a graffiti

tag on the metal fence said. It plainly read ?ASC?, one of the local

kids? tags. I knew who it was, but told him I didn?t want to spread

accusations around. John and I pointed out that 4 out of five times,

the graffitti in the neighborhood comes from local kids. For 2 years,

John and I have asked them not to tag the building. They don?t listen.

The attitude of the lead cop was disbelief. He led us to think he had

just transferred in from some low crime, swanky neighborhood. He

obviously had no idea he was in the hood. He didn?t see that we were

THE ONLY positive experience for kids in the community. Around here,

people get shot for looking at someone the wrong way. Punk culture

can be violent at times, but there has never been one case at Burnt

Ramen of it excalating to gun violence. John and I are sad it has to

end, but it went on for a long time. Much longer than anyone

expected. We hope you take Burnt Ramen as an inspiration and help

provide spaces for underground bands to perform.

 

Myk