Downtown Lowell Sub Committee Meeting
Residents/Bar & Restaurant Owners
City Hall, Mayor’s Reception Hall,
375 Merrimack Street
Wednesday April 22, 2009
7:00 P.M. to 8:00 P.M.
AGENDA
Downtown Patrol Updates
Downtown Crime Activities Report
Open Discussion
Posted in Bars, Community Problems, Downtown, Downtown Lowell, Lowell
Mayhem on Central St…what a surprise! But pick out the positive note in this SUN article…
3 Lowell women charged with assaulting police
The Lowell Sun
Updated: 01/12/2009 06:44:54 AM EST
LOWELL — Three Lowell women were arrested early yesterday morning after police were called to help clear out the El Rincon bar, 135 Central St., and then got attacked while trying to arrest a woman.
Bar employees called police about 2 a.m., to help them get patrons heading out the door, police said, but a fight started across the street.
Police said when officers tried to arrest Ellise Rosado, 22, of 2 Davis Terrace, Unit 4, two other women, identified as Jazmin Gonzalez, 25, of 55 Agawam St., Unit 5, and Merari Echevarria, 23, of 22 Bower St., Unit 401, attacked the officers in an attempt to get Rosado free.
No one was injured during the scuffle, police said.
Rosado is charged with disorderly conduct and resisting arrest. Gonzalez and Echevarria are both charged with assault and battery on a police officer, disorderly conduct and resisting arrest.
Posted in Bars, Downtown, Downtown Lowell
I missed this one myself, but thankfully someone sent this SUN editorial to me…In all fairness; I would never want to miss an opportunity to be in agreement with the SUN. I would however, like to add my own 2 cents by including a point I sent in a letter to the License Commission:
Bar owners have not lost any business by finding a way to compromise with the neighbors. Why in the world doesn’t Ms. Lucier attend the quarterly meetings with LPD, LDNA and Bar/ Restaurant owners? Although they do send a “representative”; every other bar owner/license holder attends the meetings. Just show up; listen to what people have to so say, including, and especially, other bar owners who also have to deal with all the issues that come with owning a bar in our neighborhood. It’s a mixed-use neighborhood, you can’t make everyone happy, but we’ve come a long way and learned from each other.
I suppose it goes without saying that the Dubliner “lives in a glass house”, they might want to consider getting some curtains…I could tell someone was drinking a “Bud Light” at the bar if I was sitting on the bench across the street…
And I would be remiss if I did not mention that the License Commssion is bascially a “court-of-law”, their decisions are based on evidence presented…as if the police department hasn’t presented enough evidence against this bar…maybe we just sit on the bench across the street and take few photos.
The SUN says the rest…
Last leniency
The Lowell Sun
Updated: 12/08/2008 08:26:50 AM EST
Lowell License Commissioner Brian Akashian should be commended for the strong action he recommended against the Dubliner bar in downtown Lowell.
Dubliner owner Thomas Economou was arrested in July on charges of paying for sexual conduct, assault and battery with a dangerous weapon, distribution of class B drugs, selling liquor to an intoxicated person and obstruction of a liquor inspection. Last month, Economou admitted to sufficient facts to charges of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon and paying for sexual conduct, and was placed on probation for a year.
Police testified that they found two men drinking in the bar, using cocaine in the bar, and Economou in the downstairs bathroom with a prostitute at 5 a.m. on July 24. That is shocking activity that deserves harsh disciplinary action.
And it wasn’t the first time the Dubliner ran afoul of both the law and its liquor-license requirements. On Oct. 10, Lowell police spotted three employees drinking at the bar after closing time. The employees denied the allegations, but commissioners rolled back the bar’s hours from 2 a.m. to 11 p.m. for 14 days. The bar also had its hours rolled back for a week in early October for over-serving a patron.
The latest incident was the most egregious by far, with the owner not only present but actively involved in the illegal behavior.
Certainly, we understand License Commissioner Ray Weicker’s concerns regarding the income of the bar’s employees, but the bar has thumbed its nose at Lowell’s regulations and laws too often.
Thus, we believe Akashian was correct to push for the strongest disciplinary measures. He wanted a three-week closure, but Weicker argued against it, saying it would penalize employees at Christmastime.
It’s important to recognize that some employees have been involved in some of the unlawful actions cited, so that should lessen concern for their financial well-being.
Ultimately, Akashian and Weicker agreed to slap the Dubliner with a three-week suspension, with one week to serve (which began yesterday) and two weeks held in suspension for one year. This should be the last time the troubled bar is granted leniency. Any new infractions must result in the strongest disciplinary measures allowed.
The License Commission has ordered the Dubliner to close at 11PM for one week due to an incident of overserving a patron…
Story in today’s SUN.
http://www.lowellsun.com/ci_10627611?IADID=Search-www.lowellsun.com-www.lowellsun.com
Posted in Bars, Downtown, License Commission
Since the SUN does not bother to cover the License Commission meetings, and I was there anyway…I thought I would write a little report of my own. Not to mention I have the luxury of never being confused with a journalist, so I don’t have to refrain from adding my own “two-cents”.
You can find the entire agenda at the city web site:
Agenda August 7, 2008
http://www.lowellma.gov/depts/license/agenda.2008-08-07.3953521462
Sometimes it is better to start at the end and work backwards…in the end I learned a few things:
1. I was really impressed with how thorough the discussion of evidence was between the commissioners and those charged with violations. Stephen Greene, VP, LDNA usually attends these meetings…I may go more often; I was impressed!
2. I did not know that a police officers testimony is “hear-say”… I always thought if something was documented in a police report that would pretty much be “solid” evidence. Turns out I was wrong (there are criminals out there somewhere thankful I was never one of their jurors). The commissioners gave all testimony a full hearing. I did find it interesting that all three commissioners seemed to interpret the same information differently. I think this a positive thing…there wouldn’t be much of a “fair-hearing” if everyone thought the same way. No kidding, I really learned something.
3. Should you ever be in trouble and find yourself in need of an attorney… call George Eliades.
I will not bore you with the details of every item; just a few things of particularl interest to me.
Commissioner Akashian – on the matter of the festivals listed in agenda item one and two mentioned last year he could hear the music from the festival all the way at his house five streets away “as if it was in his own yard”. He asked if that could be monitored better this year. The applicant presented a plan to monitor the sound “and” have it signed off by police at intervals throughout the event. This was cool… there was a question; there was a prepared response and resolution to the situation that will accommodate both sides. The applicant was granted the license. What if this kind of thing happened all the time? YIKES!
sidenote: I was considering calling commissioner Akashian at about 12:30 Thursday night when I was sitting at Caffe’ Paradiso with friends and we were listening to the music from the Under Impact Café “as if we were inside the place”!!! If I knew where it was located, I would have “pulled the plug” on this place. I hope the neighbors called the police. I have received emails from the neighbors; they have been calling the police to report the gross violation of the city noise ordinance. The neighbors, and most everyone else, longs for the days of the old Underground Café…it was a great place and a good neighbor.
Oh, before I forget…I am going to have t-shirts made that say, “CALL A COP”! I am going to give them to the staff at all the bars so they will be reminded to call the police dept. when they have a problem (I may have mentioned this before; LDNA members learned this lesson the hard way). I was positively giddy when Mr. Bayliss reminded the proprietors, when there is a problem, any problem; you are required to call police.
I do not know why the logic of this simple statement eludes so many bar owners. When you “throw them (trouble-makers) out” onto the street to save yourself from trouble and don’t’ call the police to alert them; what you are doing in reality is sending your trouble out to become someone else’s trouble… endless…and kind of cruel to your fellow bar owners who have to deal with your mess.
In the end, the commissioners’ decision for what they determined to be proven violations against the Under Impact was:
Take away the license for six days. However, that was suspended in lieu of six months probation. If the club has another proven violation during the next six months, they will have to close for six days, all of which must be Fridays and Saturdays.
I was personally satisfied with the decision…I really think the owners will start to call the police when they see a situation starting. I know for sure their upstairs nieghbors are going to be calling the police more often.
A hearing on the allegations against the owner of the Dubliner was scheduled for September 4th at 3PM.
I will leave it at that… for your consideration and comment.
Posted in Bars, Downtown, License Commission