Zouk fined $1,000 over guests breaching rules; URA ordered closure till May 10
Zouk has been issued a $1,000 fine after an incident in which customers breached safe management measures, said the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA).
It also ordered the nightspot to close for 10 days, from May 1 to May 10, an URA spokesman told The Straits Times on Monday (May 2).
The incident happened on April 23 when the number of patrons per table was capped at 10. Zouk had a group of customers that exceeded 10, the spokesman said.
A Zouk spokesman earlier said its closure was triggered by an incident of intermingling among guests on April 23.
The area of the Clarke Quay premises where it happened had no fixed security personnel stationed and patrol was also not conducted there at the time the incident occurred, a spokesman for the iconic nightspot told ST on Monday.
“We have stepped up safe distancing measures and doubled our security headcount to ensure that our guests’ safety is not compromised,” he added.
Zouk has also cordoned-off dance areas and checkpoints to and from the dance floor.
In response to further queries, the spokesman said the incident involved guests who intermingled with patrons from another table.
“The incident was observed by the authorities instead of our security team, as the latter was out on patrol at that particular time,” he said.
The spokesman added that since safe distancing measures were relaxed on April 26, there has been no cap on the number of patrons per table.
There are no Covid-19 cases or clusters linked to Zouk, he added.
“Our guests’ safety is our utmost priority and we continue to work closely with the authorities.”
When Zouk reopened its nightclub’s doors on April 20 after a two-year hiatus amid the pandemic, long queues of clubgoers formed outside its premises.
The club announced previously that it will operate every Wednesday, Friday and Saturday from 10pm to 3am.
On Sunday, Zouk said on Instagram that it would shut its doors at midnight until May 10.
It added then: “The safety of our guests is a priority. We have stepped up safety distancing measures and doubled our security to ensure this”.
Last Friday, the police said two outlets were issued closure orders after they were found to have breached safe management measures.
Those included failing to check the vaccination status of patrons and minimise physical interactions between customers and staff.
ST understands that Zouk was not one of the two outlets penalised.
Zouk, which can admit 1,500 people at 75 per cent of its capacity under Covid-19 safe management measures, is capping its nightly crowd size at 500 for now.
Patrons also need to buy tickets online or make table reservations.
Zouk’s other establishments - Capital Kitchen, RedTail and Phuture - remain open for business.
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