A Look at the RJ's Krave Exposé; Murphy Responds

A must-read exposé of the financial woes behind Krave Massive, Mayor Carolyn Goodman's encouragement for the project and more appeared in the Las Vegas Review-Journal over the weekend. The paper culled through 1,600 pages of emails from city and state officials to find "deep doubts about the project's chances for success and raise questions about city leaders' willingness to overlook serious problems in their zeal to show progress downtown."

Among the concerns, owner Kelly Murphy's background, his management of Krave Entertainment LLC, which filed bankruptcy in 2010 with more than $1 million in unpaid taxes alone listed as liabilities, a lawsuit from a prospective landlord who accused Murphy of falsifying records to secure a lease and then skipped on the rent, bounced payroll checks, liquor laws ignored and unpaid taxes even now.

Krave Massive originally planned to open at Neonopolis by New Year's Eve, and planned to be the largest gay nightclub in the world weighing in at 80,000 square feet. Now the opening is pushed by to May with Krave taking over the Rio's Crown Theater on Friday and Saturday nights.

City staffers raised concerns, but Mayor Goodman has shown unflappable support for the project.

While the RJ has all the details in this massive article, Murphy himself was not interviewed for the exposé and instead chose to respond via his Facebook page.

I prefer to believe that there are much more newsworthy events happening in the world to warrant the front page of the Las Vegas Review Journal, but alas it appears that it's just me and my nightclubs. I just wish they would have used a better picture!

I have always tried to conduct myself and my businesses to be positive forces, not only in the communities we serve, but within the gay community itself. I have continuously instructed my staff and employees to refrain from making negative statements, or to respond to the like. A wise man once told me that "the biggest tree catches the most wind" and this is certainly the case this time. However, it is now time to respond.

Late last year, I counseled certain employees about their poor work performance and their response was to resign instead of improving their performance to the high level required to effectively operate a major nightclub company. I am thoroughly disgusted with the unnecessary hostility that these former employees have since been fostering. In my opinion, these disgruntled former employees are cowards. They make anonymous statements to the press, post anonymous hateful messages on the Internet, and, worst of all, make anonymous and false "tips" to regulatory officials on the most unbelievably ridiculous things. We've recently suffered from numerous inspection visits, including a visit from OSHA for an anonymous report of "frayed extension cords."

The transition to Krave Massive has indeed been challenging, but we have continued to operate, raised all of our additional capital needed for construction of what is going to be one of the biggest nightclubs in the world, have the most amazing business partner a company could ask for, and we are moving full steam ahead. We are a stronger company today than yesterday, and that is the true blessing that has emerged.

Through all of this, my staff has held their heads up high, and continued to provide the best entertainment venues in the country and serve the LGBT community in a positive and empowering environment. I can proudly say that we have the most amazing staff at both Drink & Drag Lounge and Krave at the Rio. We are happy to be moving forward with Boys Lounge and Krave Massive and I can personally assure everyone that both of these venues will be amazing!

I would like to extend my sincere appreciation to the mayor and the city counsel who have steadfastly shown their support for my projects and the LGBT community in general. They are intelligent, forward-looking individuals who understand both entrepreneurial challenges and the positive impact that the LGBT community has on development, business and quality of life.

In the words of Dita Von Teese: "You can be the ripest, juiciest peach in the world, and there's still going to be somebody who hates peaches."