It’s hard to ignore the delicious irony of opening a second outpost of a nightclub whose acronym stands for “ONE OF A KIND”. But all that is forgotten upon entering 1 Oak Las Vegas, a spectacular, 16,000 square foot stunner in the Mirage Resort & Casino.

Sometimes, wearing two hats doesn’t stop the rain. I was kept late at job sites yesterday evening, as my designer hat kept me deep in sheetrock, dust, and paint fumes. My firm is currently finishing four venues that will open between now and Labor Day, and I don’t have enough hours in the day, or showers, or clothes, stashed around town. The Richie Akiva/Scott Sartiano restaurant on 14th and 8th has been named The Darby. I’ve known this for a while, but needed it to break in The Times, first. That’s where the two hats get into arguments with each other. I am so excited about this project, as each day the place looks more like the vision my partner, Marc Dizon, and I developed months ago. I’ll talk about this more in the coming weeks. Next door, at the old Country Club/ Dirty Disco space, now known as Snap, a woman and celebrity-friendly sports bar/restaurant is shaping up. The restaurant at 146 Orchard Street is in its final stages of construction, and looking like a winner. Stand Up New York, our first comedy club, is open to the public, while final finishes make it sweeter every day. Needless to say, my schedule is hectic, and I missed two events that I swore I’d attend last night.

Whenever the 10th of June rolls around I always think: I know this date so well, but how? Cue David Lynch-esque deja-vu music while I think about past lives until I realize, Oh, it's Tenjune. Right. Eugene Remm & Mark Birnbaum's Svedka Vodka Adult Playground 2033 was last night, at Abe & Arthurs—not at Tenjune, because my head would've exploded as that very date happens to be both of their birthdays. I'm not sure how I managed to get invited to the club impresarios' joint birthday jam, what with the likes of Kim Kardashian and DJ Cassidy on the personal guestlist, but it was enough to remind me that I have a lot more to accomplish in my life to deserve a birthday party the size of one called 'Adult Playground,' and a lot more to accomplish before my name makes it to the party recap list next to attendees like Whitney Port and Tyson Beckford, and even more to accomplish before Mark and Eugene actually invite me to their soiree. Themselves. Anyway, hopefully all of that happens before 2033, like the Svedka sponsors suggest, but for now, I am just happy I got to see (if not be seen) celebrations for such iconic industry as like Remm and Birnbaum.

A casual conversation yesterday ended with much confusion and no conclusions. Is New York nightlife one of the last/worst industries for women executives? I went online and read about progress in the workplace throughout America. I read how the disparity in wages and the percentages of women in management is chipping away at the gender gap. Yet in nightlife the opposite seems to be the case. With Bungalow 8 still closed and not likely to open anytime soon, nightlife’s leading lady Amy Sacco is without a NYC base. And with a hundred joints banging bottles and blasting beats, I can’t think of a single gal running a big show. Ariel Palitz has Sutra, a small but very viable offering on 1st Avenue and 1st, and I’m sure my wonderful readers will tell me about a pub here, or a joint there, but progress to the top of the heap seems to be stalled.

This week the world celebrates the baptism of William Shakespeare on April 26, 1564. He was neat enough to pass into immortality on April 23, 1616. This was actually before my time. I looked it up. Among the many sharp things the famous bard said, this one is found in Romeo and Juliet: “What's in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet.” With that in mind and to answer quite a bit of my “fan” mail, I will offer that the 14th Street supper club Marc Dizon and myself are designing for Richie Akiva and Scott Sartiano does actually have a name. It isn’t “14SSC” or “2oak” or “Better.” When they tell me I can tell you, I will. It is a wonderful name. The place actually has an approximate opening date and, as of yesterday, we were on schedule. Again, I’ll let you know when I’m unleashed. I was strolling last night with my gal pal and stopped in Butter to say “hey.” It still impresses me. I asked Scott Sartiano if I could tell you guys but he said “No, not yet,” quoting Shakespeare, I believe (or was it Al Capone?) “You say anything and I’ll kill you.”

"Whether you’re single and ready to mingle or are searching for some 'QT' with the spouse before sending the babysitter home, there's plenty of nightlife in Charlotte": this is how Charlotte's Got a Lot characterizes nightlife in Charlotte, North Carolina. Not a tag line you'd associate with New York City clubs like 1Oak and Butter, but that didn't stop Scott Sartiano and Richie Akiva, the owners of these long standing nightlife hotspots to open a Butter outpost in Sartiano's hometown. Butter Charlotte opened on Friday, February 19th with Manhattan nightlifers like Adam Alpert and DJ Sinatra, DJ Jus Ske, Butter supporters like Nicky Hilton and the Black Eyed Peas bringing a little bit of Manhattan to NC and perhaps reviving the deep seeded interest in Manhattan's own celeb hang with the surprising long-standing Monday night party.

The aftermath of the World Trade Center attacks left the city's economy in shambles and redefined the psyche and habits of nightlife. Many clubs, lounges and restaurants could not withstand the loss of tourist dollars and general economic downturn. By mid-decade a new way of doing business and new problems changed everything again. The club world will never be the same. In the scheme of things, writing about the effects of the 9/11 attack on clubs is unbelievably trivial. Yet the business of clubs is ever changing, adjusting to the world at large and this event, and the events that resulted from it, defined the fading decade.

We did it last year, when this interview series was borned, and back then our pal Rachel Uchitel was #2 to a doorman. No more! Half a million pageviews later, Rachel, you're second to none, but we're retiring your number. It's time to make way for the class of 2009.

With the end of the summer underlined by chill winds and daily highs hovering around room temperature, the business of nightlife is readily anticipating the opening of some new businesses. Between now and the drop of the ball on New Year's Eve, a club space odyssey will change nightlife as we know it. Although it isn't raining money, there is enough of a drizzle to support new growth in a constantly evolving and extremely vibrant scene. These new contenders are diverse and seem organized to succeed. In no particular order, here are nine spaces that will soon be on your lips and minds.

And the lord said to Noah, come with all your household into the ark, for I have seen you to be righteous (upright and in right standing) before me in this generation." Genesis 8