AUSTIN, Texas — Austin's punk and metal communities could be losing a venue many say is crucial to the scene.
On Sunday, Marcello Murphy – owner of The Lost Well, located on Webberville Road in East Austin – posted on his personal Facebook page that the bar could be closing soon.
Murphy's post included a screenshot of a text message he received from Raul Aguilar, the property's owner. It stated that Aguilar had received an offer to sell and was in talks to move forward with the sale.
"I guess when it's finalized, we have 60 days to move out because they sold the property," Murphy told KVUE.
Aguilar said the situation is nothing personal – it's a business decision. He told KVUE he has "nothing but respect" for The Lost Well and the venue was given the first right of refusal to buy the property, but nothing materialized.
"During the course of their [tenancy], I've received multiple offers," Aguilar said. "Times have changed, Austin has changed – just visualize the area where [The] Lost Well is located."
Aguilar said he is meeting with a representative from the potential buyer this week to resolve certain provisions on the contract, adding that "just like any contract, it's not official until both parties agree and confirm with their signature."
"The friendliest bar you've ever been scared to walk into"
A few hours after Murphy's announcement on his page, The Lost Well posted to Facebook and Instagram, sharing a photo of a mural at the venue, with just a black heart emoji as the caption.
From there, the reactions have poured in. Both posts have dozens of comments from community members who are upset by the venue's possible closure. Commenters called The Lost Well the best metal bar or venue in Austin, one of the last of its kind and their "favorite place in town."
Even The Lost Well's fellow venues have paid their respects – The Side Bar commented, "So sorry y'all" on The Lost Well's Instagram post while Yellow Jacket Social Club responded with emojis of a wilted rose and a broken heart.
Both Murphy and Alyssa Leigh – who has played in bands at the venue since it opened 11 years ago – say The Lost Well served as a place of acceptance and community.
"They see a bunch of spiky-haired people, but then they come in and realize, 'Oh, you're about to get hugged and loved,'" Leigh said.
"The motto is 'be nice or go home,' you know?" Murphy said. "We don't have very many jerks that come through here. Everybody's real sweet."
Leigh said Austin is known as the "live music capital of the world," but creative spaces like The Lost Well can't compete against large corporations.
"It's not just the punk scene being impacted, it's going to be everyone," she said. "Their safe spaces or wherever they feel like that's their community is definitely in danger when you have these people coming in and making it so hard for anyone to survive in the city anymore."
Leigh said what may be just a business deal to some is actually very personal to long-time patrons who say venues that support the metal and punk scene are hard to come by.
"Everyone is so accepted and loving here and not being able to keep it around is so hard to wrap my brain around because I don't know where else we're going to go now," Leigh said.
Murphy, his wife and "the Lost Well family" have started a GoFundMe campaign to cover "work staff, costs to vacate, and hopefully figure out the next step in this journey."
It's unclear at this time exactly when The Lost Well will close its doors, but the venue does have several shows booked this week, including its 11th anniversary celebration on Friday.