Will Comedy Zone bring better music?

The Comedy Zone, which closed its doors uptown earlier this year, is likely to re-open in NoDa.
That’s right - Observer business columnist Doug Smith reported last week that partners with the company will put a new Comedy Zone (among other things) in the 9,000-square-foot former dye house building at Highland Park Mill No. 3.

The plan calls for a 500-seat comedy club and a live-entertainment venue that will hold 1,000, said spokesman Craig Russing. The proposal also is slated to include a sports-bar-like eatery and a coffee shop catering to residents of the neighboring Highland Mill Apartments on North Davidson Street between Mallory and 33rd streets.

Although the Comedy Zone will retain its name, Russing said the partners are still working on a name for the complex itself, which probably won’t open until March.

The live-music venue will be direct competition for the Neighborhood Theatre, also in NoDa. The spot’s capacity, however, means it will also compete with Amos’ Southend, Tremont Music Hall, and whatever live-music club lands in the N.C. Music Factory.

I hope music fans will benefit. I hope we will start getting more of the acts that play at Cat’s Cradle in Chapel Hill or the Orange Peel in Asheville, but don’t play here. I hope it also means we’ll get a wider variety of music in general.