Rumors abound as a full-on demolition begins inside the former Gold Coast Bar space located at 8228 Santa Monica Boulevard. Construction workers were seen removing debris yesterday and photos of the demo are circulating on social media, sparking speculations of what is possibly coming to the gayborhood east of La Cienega.
One of the oldest gay bars in West Hollywood, Gold Coast Bar closed for good in September 2020 after serving the community for 39 years. It became the fourth gay bar to close on Santa Monica Boulevard. The LGBT community lost Gym Bar, Flaming Saddles, and Rage Nightclub due to the COVID-19 pandemic, which forced all bars shut for over a year.
The rumor mill alleges that that the space will continue to be a gay bar, although that has not yet been confirmed.
Owner of the shuttered Faultline Bar, Ruby DeFresno (aka Ruby Nuno, Ruby DeFaultline), hinted that she was trying to get into the space and make the Gold Coast Bar space the new home to the Faultline, which closed last year. She posted a video on social media where a woman (presumably DeFresno) is using a crowbar to chip and tear out the Gold Coast Bar name located at the former bar’s parking lot. She vaguely suggested she was trying to pry the Gold Coast loose for the Faultline, but if there ever was any negotiation on a possible lease, we’ll probably never know. She never mentions the Gold Coast again after a backlash from the community who felt the video was tone deaf and in poor taste.
There is another rumor we’ve heard, and this one is a little more believable. According to the sweet chirping sound from our little birds, NSYNC singer Lance Bass is opening a bar at this location. This rumor kind of makes sense, considering Bass already has a relationship with landlord Monte Overstreet with whom he signed a lease to take over the former Rage Nightclub space to bring us a WeHo mega dance club of sorts. Lance would have part ownership at an LGBT restaurant and bar at Rocco’s WeHo, a dance club at the Rage Nightclub space and if the murmurs are true, he’d also own a local gay pub at the former Gold Coast space.
Again, all hearsay.
All we know for sure at this time is that whatever little was left of the former Gold Coast Bar is being sledged-hammered away as we post this piece to make way for something new, possible another another gay bar. We hope.
Calls to Monte Overstreet have not yet been returned.
It closed in 2020.
As long as they don’t demolish those fantastically nasty toilets………or there will be a riot in town!