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To Yale's dismay, Toad's plans terrace 

If Toad’s Place owner Brian Phelps has his way, the iconic club known for concert venues and Saturday night dance parties will also be known for popcorn, coffee and tea. Phelps would have his vision actualized: an “L”-shaped, 40-person terrace for patrons who want to light up a cigarette.

But if Yale officials have their way, the Toad’s terrace, as it is proposed, would not exist at all.

Courtesy Toad's Place/

The proposed plan for Toad’s Place’s new rooftop terrace includes a 6-foot fence to block cigarette butts, as well as a counter to sell espresso, soda, tea, cookies and popcorn to those seeking relief from the crowds in and outside the dance venue.

The designs of the club’s rooftop have already been approved by the city’s fire marshal, and the next milestone before Toad’s can begin construction — approval by the New Haven Board of Zoning Appeals — is all but expected at a BZA meeting tonight. Although Yale officials raised health and fire concerns about the project in a July letter, they ultimately have no authority in the board’s decision tomorrow. . . .

Phelps announced in June that he was seeking approval of the plan, but at a BZA public hearing in July, he received a letter of opposition written by Associate Vice President and University Properties Director Abigail Rider on behalf of Yale. In the letter, Rider claimed that a rooftop smokers’ area would facilitate smoking, which would contravene public health policies set by the University, as well as city, state and federal governments. She also said Toad’s customers would be able to flick cigarette butts off the roof and onto the heads of bystanders, a fire and health hazard.

But she ultimately has no jurisdiction

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