Icehouse saved as it settles eviction lawsuit, with new owner taking over

Minneapolis music venue and restaurant Icehouse has settled its eviction lawsuit out of court, "restructuring" its business and lease agreements and appointing Walker Art Center trustee John Higgins as its new owner.

In an announcement this week, the popular music club confirmed that its founder and general manager, Brian Liebeck, will continue to be active in club operations and will be joined by drummer JT Bates, who run the venue's programming.

News of the club's impending eviction came out in April when it was reported by Star Tribune that a lawsuit filed by its  landlord alleged that the venue owed at least $85,000 in rent.

"The Icehouse team is very excited to run to the business with the goal to be both financially sustainable and remain one of the most important independently owned clubs in Minneapolis,” said Higgins.

"The club industry is extremely challenging with very high operating costs and major competition for local and national artists. However, Icehouse deserves to be saved."

Higgins is the director of Minneapolis biotechnology tools company Bio-Techne and a trustee of The Walker Art Center. He operates The Portage, a music club in Cable, Wisconsin, with his wife, and is known in the Twin Cities as the owner of the Lake of the Isles home that has a giant No. 2 pencil sculpture outside.

Icehouse employs over 30 people and brings nearly 1,000 patrons to the Eat Street neighborhood every week, booking more than 400 performing acts a year.

"I am pleased to work with Brian and JT to chart a new course to help make Icehouse better than ever," Higgins says. "There are not two people in the Twin Cities who work harder than these two to support artists and give them a state-of-the-art, safe, clean place to perform their craft."

The club plans to host an event on August 3, "Rise-up" that will feature International Reggae All-Stars, Socaholix, and Innocent.