Forced to close its doors after 4 p.m. now, the Fat Tuscan Café may have to close forever if its zoning code doesn't change.
The Italian-American restaurant on 725 NE First St., which regularly features live guitar music, had its last evening performance Friday. Until further notice, it will be closed on Sundays and after 4 p.m. every other day due to a noise complaint from a resident.
The original zoning code did not allow the café to be open after 4 p.m. Monday through Saturday or be open on Sundays. But around December 2009, owners Michelle Reeves and Marianne Toppino started to keep the café open Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays until around 8:30 p.m.
"We needed to bring in some more income with the economy the way it is," Reeves said. "[The longer hours have] been carrying us through the recession."
Gainesville Code Enforcement officer Todd Martin issued a noise complaint citation after a call from a nearby resident May 15 during a night of acoustic music. The café had until May 21 to comply with its zoning code.
Neither the resident who complained nor Martin could be reached for comment.
"Now, we have to go to the City Commission and ask them to let us do what we're already doing," Reeves said.
Collin McLeod, 24, of 738 NE Second St., shares a fence line with the Fat Tuscan. He said the restaurant's noise has never bothered him.
"Honestly, Eighth Avenue is more annoying with ambulances and cop cars than the Fat Tuscan," he said.
Elijah George, 27, of 114 NE Seventh Ave., who owns a lot adjacent to the café, said he was unaware the Fat Tuscan had live music on weekends but said noise from Sky Bar on University Avenue bothers him.
"I know a lot of people complain about that in the neighborhood," George said. "But they never shut that down."
The café may not last through the summer if it is not able to hold evening hours, Reeves said.
