Jimmy’s Music Club –currently being operated as “The Willow” (not Jimmy’s)–just can’t seem to pull away from threats and attacks of late. Everything from liquor license moratoriums to neighbor noise complaints have kept the legendary New Orleans music venue from re-opening since Hurricane Katrina, but now the Jimmy’s building can add “attempted arson” to its laundry list of reasons the police have visited the property at the corner of Willow and Dublin streets in uptown’s Carrollton district.
Carrollton Station owner, Mike Miller, caught on security video. (Source: WWL TV)
In a WWL-TV report last night, Mike Miller, owner of the Carrollton Station bar located just across the street from The Willow, is seen on Jimmy’s security camera inserting a lit ear wax candle into the side door frame of Jimmy’s building during the day and walking away. Miller was later interviewed briefly by WWL and stated that he “has no problems with the club, there was no damage and the incident was a harmless joke.” Miller also said that arson was never his intent and that the prank was meant to help suck “bad mojo” out of the venue that appears to be plagued with bad luck and drama. Miller was arrested after he was caught on security video placing the burning cone and the police called by Jimmy himself.
Jimmy Anselmo, who still owns the old Jimmy’s building and who was the proprietor of the former Jimmy’s Music Club, didn’t see the humor in the prank (note how upset he is in his statement to WWL-TV in the video in this post). “This is arson. They could have burned my building down,” he said. This exacerbates what has become a tense situation with the club regarding such issues as problems caused by the previous operators (The Frat House), as well as the new operators of the club, who rechristened it “The Willow” after a dispute with Anselmo over who owns the rights to the name “Jimmy’s Club.” Several neighbors on the block rallied while the new operators renovated the property to prevent the re-opening of the building as a bar or music venue (these issues were resolved prior to The Willow’s opening in the fall of 2013).
It seems rather strange for the owner of the bar and music venue directly across the street to be accused of being the perpetrator of an arson, especially considering Carrollton Station held several documented benefit events for Jimmy’s defense fund last year while the Anselmos and their new lessees were fighting City Hall for their permits.
Carrollton Station menu board advertising a Jimmy's Defense Fund benefit event from August, 2013. (Source: NewOrleans.me)
After a long battle last year, Jimmy’s was finally granted a liquor license again, as well as a live music permit, provided sound-proofing and other requirements were met in order to maintain the business’ Good Neighbor Agreement with the local neighborhood association. The new bar operators renamed the club The Willow, but Anselmo remains the property owner. Police will continue and complete the investigation of the incident with Carrollton Station’s Mike Miller. It has has been classified as of press time as “attempted arson.”
