UCSD officials have launched what appears to be the final chapter in the saga of the campus’ Ché Café, an art-laden vegan restaurant and one of the few remaining all-ages music venues in San Diego – but the venue’s supporters won’t let the eatery pass into history without a fight.
Small-business attorney Andrea Carter has said that she will seek a Superior Court injunction on the cafe’s behalf if the university doesn’t withdraw a 30-day eviction notice filed Friday, June 13, by UCSD Vice Chancellor Gary Matthews. The notice states that the cafe “must surrender the premises to university in good and orderly condition, clean and free of debris” on or before July 13. University officials say the facility is no longer safe without extensive renovations, which reportedly would cost $700,000. Students have voted that the school not apportion any funds for repairs. Published reports say the nonprofit, student collective-run Ché is behind in its rent, in violation of the lease it signed with UCSD in 2006. They add that the venue has no fire-sprinkler system. Volunteers content that the repair cost figure is inflated and that the school is using it as a means to support its notice of termination.
The building, which dates to the 1940s, is located at 9500 Gilman Dr., just north of the university’s School of Medicine. The cafe, founded in 1980, hosts art shows and film screenings, is a sometimes vegan eatery and was the venue for concerts by such acts as Jimmy Eat World, The Dillinger Escape Plan, Green Day and The Plot to Blow Up the Eiffel Tower.
The name is a testament to Cuban revolutionary Che Guevara; it’s also intended as an acronym for “Cheap Healthy Eats.”
At press time, the collective is asking acts booked after July 13 to contact the venue to discuss the situation and options for maybe playing elsewhere.