The controversial Escape nightclub is up for sale after temporarily closing down for renovations.

Owner Paul DeCouto said last night that three people had put in offers for the Par-La-Ville Road premises, and he was taking one very seriously.

The club closed down on Thursday to enable refurbishment work to be carried out, but Mr. DeCouto said it was likely to be open again by the end of the month.

“It's going up for sale,” said Mr. DeCouto.

“I have to do some minor repairs to the dance floor and stuff like that, but we are putting it up for sale. In fact, I have already had a few interested people.

“We have had three serious offers, but one, in particular, is really pushing for it. He wants to keep the property as a club, but I think he also has some other ideas for it, as well.”

Mr. DeCouto said he planned to go back to the family business Cycle Care, which is currently run by his father and brother.

But he said he would not miss the hassle and problems that came with the nightclub business, along with the unsociable hours.

“I'm a little tired of the nightlife business,” said Mr. DeCouto.

“I don't feel like dealing with a lot of the clientele that seem to be creating problems everywhere. I don't like dealing with people that are unruly.

“In saying that, the way the door is set up now, it is ideal. And since we introduced an attitude code, instead of the dress code, there has been an improvement.

“We have a new entrance and we have a very good team on the door, so the club is all set up for whoever wants to buy it.

“My family needs me, so I will be joining them again. They are going crazy at the cycle shop and they need some help. I'm a mechanic by trade, so I'm just going back to that.”

Mr. DeCouto would not talk about how much the club was likely to sell for, or when he was expecting a sale to be finalised, but he said if nothing materialised with the three interested parties now, he would advertise it.

Mr. DeCouto has owned The Escape for five years. It started out as a juice bar for school teenagers, but began to attract a different crowd when it was given a liquor licence three years ago.

However, since then, The Escape has had trouble with violence, drugs and an alleged strip show.

But this summer, unruly behaviour came to a head when a number of people queuing to get into the club rushed the door, which was shared with M.R. Onions bar upstairs.

As a result, Mr. DeCouto separated the two entrances and installed a corridor to instil some order when guests lined up to get in.

There was also plans for a new coat check area, and people entering were also searched with a metal detector and “patted down” to ensure no weapons got inside the premises.

Glasses were also replaced with plastic beakers and a hard line was taken against anyone who was found to be using drugs.

Mr. DeCouto said he was working alongside Police to reduce trouble, and said he had up to 16 security officers working on some nights.