The Last Ditch soft-closes as it seeks new owners

The Last Ditch, a lesbian bar in Greenfield, Massachusetts, says it is soft-closing immediately as it seeks new owners, while already-booked events will continue. The bar said it expects to close this winter if it cannot find someone to take over. In a social-media announcement, the bar said it still lacked the board or leadership team needed to manage a transfer to worker ownership. It described the immediate change as a soft closure: regular operations are ending, but scheduled events will go ahead. The announcement did not confirm that a buyer or worker-owned cooperative had been secured. The bar’s announcement also valued its equipment, furniture, repairs, inventory and other assets at about $70,000. It invited prospective owners to join the business, train and take over the transition, or purchase it outright. The valuation is the bar’s estimate. The closure announcement follows months of public attention after The Last Ditch changed its mask policy. The venue had required patrons to wear masks, including KN95 masks or better, and said the rule was intended to reduce COVID-19 transmission and make the space safer for disabled people. On August 31, 2026, it announced that...