Hollywood Hookah reopened Tuesday night after a fire shut down the Marshall Street lounge two months ago.

The business was open less than two weeks before a lit coal caused the Nov. 20 fire. Investigators said it was caused by careless disposal of the charcoal.

Niko Rechul, co-owner of the hookah bar and a player on the Syracuse University football team, said he spent most of break fireproofing the lounge so he could get a permit to reopen it.

Rechul replaced all the equipment in the business’ back room – where the coals are stored – with stainless steel so nothing would catch fire. He had to put up exit signs and create a plan to train his 10 to 15 employees on how to handle smoldering coals.

City inspectors required that Rechul break down the wall between the two rooms to create a fire exit in the 2,000-square-foot space.

Rechul said he and co-owner Mikhail Marinovich, also a player on the SU football team, were unaware that they had to place both smoke detectors and sprinklers in the hookah bar.

‘No one had opened up a hookah bar before, so even the city wasn’t exactly sure what we needed to know,’ Rechul said.

The owners worked with the fire department and building inspectors before reopening the lounge, located at 171 Marshall St. above J. Michael Shoes.

Rechul and Marinovich stopped working at their business until the end of football season, according to an article published Nov. 21 in The Daily Orange.

Those working restrictions came after criticism of the two players and the SU football team following media coverage of the business.

shmelike@syr.edu

Published on January 20, 2009 at 12:00 pm