Tempe Gay Bar The Door Slams Shut

By Benjamin Leatherman Fri., Jun. 26 2009 at 6:21 PM

Categories: Opening/Closing

It appears that Tempe gay and lesbian hangout The Door has, uh, closed its doors for good. A message on the establishment's voice mail unequivocally states that the club is DOA, as well as thanking customers for their patronage and urging them to take their business to Old Town Scottsdale gay bar BS West.

"The Door is now closed and [is] permanently closed," an unidentified male states in the message. "When The Door reopens it will be a different venue. It is no longer and will no longer be a gay bar."

The message does not indicate when the actual closure took place. Calls to owners Jim Vigil and Chris Smith have not been returned. The Door's MySpace page indicates that no one has logged in since May 30. The signage at the bar, which is located at a small strip mall near Scottsdale and Curry roads, has also been removed.

The venue has struggled to find an audience since it opened as a speakeasy-like lounge back in 2005 as a member of the Dos Gringos family of theme restaurants and bars. (This apparently hasn't been a good month for such places, as former Dos chain member Sugar Daddy's was also shuttered recently). It changed owners over the past few years before coming under the guardianship of Vigil and Smith late last year when the relaunched it as a gay bar.