SLOWING TO A CRAWL

It's been just less than a year since 7416 Baltimore Ave. finally opened its doors to the public as Thirsty Turtle, after more than a year of prolonged anticipation.

The excitement was palpable across the campus and much of College Park a year ago. Many expected the bar would revitalize downtown nightlife, which had been dominated by just a few chronically overcrowded bars. Its promise of multiple wet bars, flat-screen TVs and a dance floor seemed to match its college clientele perfectly.

But since then, Thirsty Turtle seems to have settled among the ranks of other College Park venues. Its short history has also been blighted by a few controversies, and while some still find it to be a fitting spot for weekend debauchery, other patrons said the bar has lost its initial luster.

Senior Raphael Stottlemyer has only been to Thirsty Turtle once, and he doesn't plan on returning. Going to the bar earlier this semester to celebrate a friend's birthday, he noticed a smell on the first floor "kind of like vomit with bleach mixed in it."

"It had a really lasting impression on me," the government and politics major said, adding he was nowhere near a bathroom when he noticed the odor. "I've smelled a lot of things; I've been to a lot of parties - I don't know what it was."

Mysterious odors aside, Thirsty Turtle still draws large crowds. On any given weekend, its long lines typically wrap around the building to the shops on Lehigh Road.

Sophomore community health major Michelle Firmin, a self-proclaimed Turtle regular, said she and her friends go "at least once every two weeks." She likes the bar because of its cheaper drinks and the second floor's club-like atmosphere, she said.

"I've liked it from the beginning," said Firmin, who went for the first time last spring. "It's probably one of my favorite places to go."

Freshman Dave Vernet, a business major, usually goes every other weekend.

"It's really a fun place to go," he said. "The first time I went, it was really cool. You're shocked by the atmosphere."

However, Firmin and Vernet both said the bar has lost some of its initial excitement. Despite being a regular, Firmin said she does not have as much fun there as she used to.

Vernet said he liked Thirsty Turtle "a little bit less now," simply because "it's not as awesome as when I first started going."

Thirsty Turtle owner Alan Wanuck declined to comment for this story.

Mark Srour, who owns Cornerstone Grill and Loft, The Mark and Santa Fe Cafe, said his business was hampered by Thirsty Turtle "for about six months" due to its immediate success. However, things have since reached a more regular pace.

"It definitely hurt all the bars [at first], because it was new and everyone wanted to try it out," he said. "It doesn't hurt us like it used to."

Srour attributed the trend to local residents' fascinations with a brand-new hangout spot. But he said this is nothing out of the ordinary.

The same thing happened after the Rendezvous Inn became Cornerstone and R.J. Bentley's opened years ago, Srour said. Both enjoyed temporary peaks in success, but the excitement died down soon enough.

"Everyone wants to see what it's all about," he explained. "When they open up, they always become popular at first."

Other bars have upheld the competition through new drink specials, and Santa Fe maintains its usual large crowds through live bands, Srour said.

Since the burst of excitement about its opening, Thirsty Turtle has endured multiple controversies. Some said the Thirsty Turtle has a reputation among students as being the "easiest" to enter underage.

"It's definitely the easiest one to get into with a fake ID, honestly," Firmin said.

Vernet pointed out that Thirsty Turtle lures many underage students because of its appearance at first glance, most notably the distinct red and black brick exterior and large crowds out front.

"Turtle's really the one that's most visible. Everybody crowds around there," he said. "It's definitely where all the younger students go."

Although Vernet agreed the bar has a reputation for letting the most underage students in, he added, "I do have plenty of junior and senior friends who still go."

The bar's opening was delayed for more than a year due to a chicken-wire fence propped behind the building, blocking a fire exit in a back alley and preventing the facility from opening. Soon after, the Prince George's County Fire Marshal shut the bar down early one night because its occupancy placard was not displayed.

Last December, members of four Greek chapters asked that their chapters' names be taken down from the walls of the bar's second floor, which features the letters of most Greek organizations on the campus. Wanuck hired contractors to remove the letters.

Just last week, the bar was slapped with a $3,000 fine by the county after being found refilling used bottles of liquor.

Though the controversies haven't deterred all students, Stottlemyer and his friends choose to frequent Washington bars. Thirsty Turtle is "absolutely way too crowded for me," he said, adding that the large crowds trying to enter and order drinks create long waits.

"I'm not making that trip back to the Thirsty Turtle," he said. "Me, I just prefer somewhere else."

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