Cooper Mgmt - Bricktown Liquor License info
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MEMORANDUM
July 27,2005
TO:
The Honorable Mayor and City Council Members
FROM:
Michael C. Van Milligen, City Manager
SUBJECT: Bricktown
Cooper Management Company LLC, or Bricktown, is asking for a change in their liquor
license to allow serving alcohol at their newly-created outdoor eating area. Chief of
Police Kim Wadding is recommending that the request be tabled.
Since Bricktown was issued a new 12-month liquor license on June 6, 2005, they have
had numerous violations, including:
1. Five persons were cited for possession of alcohol under 21.
2. On July 7, 2005, three bar managers were cited for making alcohol available
after 2:00 a.m. Additionally, one of the bar managers was arrested for public
intoxication.
Bricktown has submitted an implementation plan to Chief Wadding to improve
compliance and the Chief is reviewing that plan with them.
I respectfully request that the Mayor and City Council table the liquor license change
request until September 6, 2005.
/!1Lv1 ~:~ 171
Mi'chael c. Van Milligen
MCVM/jh
Attachment
cc: Cooper Management, LLC, 299 Main Street, Dubuque, IA 52001
Barry Lindahl, Corporation Counsel
Cindy Steinhauser, Assistant City Manager
Kim B. Wadding, Chief of Police
Page 1 of 1
, Juanita Hilkin
From: Kim Wadding [kwadding@cityofdubuque.org]
Sent: Wednesday, July 27,200512:02 PM
To: Michael C. VanMiIIigen (Michael C. VanMilligen)
Cc: Cindy Steinhauser (Cindy Steinhauser); Balesq@Cityofdubuque. Org; Jeanne Schneider (Jeanne
Schneider)
Subject: Bricktown - Update of Calls for Service/Outdoor Service Area
Mike,
Attached is a memorandum outlining the calls for service for Bricktown for the months of June and July through
July 25,2005. Addtionally, I recommended the application for outdoor service be tabled until we have some
history of compliance to the items proposed by Scott Neuwoehner. Hard copy with Scott Neuwoehner's letter will
follow. Thanks.
Kim
7/27/2005
,
D~B~E
~~~
MEMORANDUM
Date: July 27, 2005
To: Michael C. Van Milligen
City Manager
From: Kim B. Wadding
Police Chief
Re: Cooper Management Company, LLC (Bricktown) Outdoor Service Application
INTRODUCTION
The purpose of the memorandum is to update the police calls for service (CFS)
regarding Cooper Management Company, LLC (Stonewall Lounge, Bricktown Brewery,
Blackwater Grill and the Underground) located at 299 Main Street and ask City Council
consideration to table Cooper Management Company's application for an outdoor
service area.
BACKGROUND
On June 6, 2005, the City Council approved a 12-month liquor license renewal for the
Cooper Management Company, LLC. As part of the renewal process and for City
Council consideration, the police department submitted a memorandum outlining the
calls for service from June 1, 2004 to May 25, 2005 and their relationship with other
similar businesses in the community. The comparison showed Bricktown with a higher
number of calls for service (CFS) coupled with a comparatively higher number of
alcohol related arrests and citations.
Although the City Council approved the liquor license 12-month renewal, many
concerns remained relative to the calls for service and subsequent alcohol related
arrests and citations. At the time of the June 6, 2005 City Council meeting and specific
to Cooper Management there were three pending municipal infractions for allowing
persons under the legal age to remain in the establishment after 9:00 P.M., and a
citation to an employee for selling or dispensing alcoholic beverages after closing March
31, 2005. The municipal infractions were issued February 2, February 17 and March
31,2005.
DISCUSSION
,
Since the June 6, 2005 City Council meeting there have been additional citations issued
to Cooper Management, LLC employees. During the month of June there were 10 calls
for service (CFS), consisting offive extra attentions where officers monitored patrons
exiting at closing, one disturbance, a citizen assist, one theft, and one tavern inspection.
Of these calls, five persons were cited for possession of alcohol under 21, two on June
15, 2005, one on June 19, 2005 and two on June 25, 2005.
For the period of July 1 to July 25, 2005, there were nine (9) calls for service (CFS)
consisting of four extra attentions, two parking complaints, one tavern inspection, one
suspicious person complaint, and one traffic problem. Regarding the tavern inspection,
on July 7,2005, 2:01 A.M. police investigated a concern of employees serving alcohol
after hours. As a result, three separate bar managers were cited for making alcohol
available after 2:00 A.M. Additionally, one of the bar managers and one of the owners
were arrested for public intoxication. Those charges are pending.
Following the July 7,2005 incident, I met with Scott Neuwoehner, President, Bricktown
Entertainment Complex. Scott Neuwoehner supplied a letter outlining several changes
Cooper Management is proposing to help eliminate the ongoing concerns related to
underage drinking, management supervision, accountability in the dispensing of
alcoholic drinks, and improvement in staff training (Letter Attached).
RECOMMENDATION
Although the written corrective proposals address many of the ongoing concerns, there
has not been sufficient time to fully implement or historically measure the effectiveness
of the remedies. Accordingly, we would recommend the application for an outdoor
service area be tabled until such time the City Manager brings it back to City Council
consideration after a period of review has been completed ensuring overall compliance.
ACTION REQUESTED
The action requested is for City Council consideration to table the request to add an
outdoor service area regarding Cooper Management, LLC 299 Main Street.
Cc: Barry Lindahl, Corporation Attorney
Cindy Steinhauser, Assistant City Manager
Jeanne Schneider, City Clerk
August 1, 2005
TO: The Honorable Mayor and City Council Members
FROM: Scott A. Neuwoehner, President Bricktown Brewery
SUBJECT: Bricktown request for liquor license for newly created outdoor
eating area.
This letter is in regard to the memo you received dated July 27, 2005 from
Michael C. Van Milligan in which Chief Wadding and Mr. Van Milligan are asking
that our request for a liquor license extension to our outdoor café be tabled until
the September 6, 2005 council meeting. Unfortunately, I will not be able to attend
tonight’s meeting and since the chance that this will not be tabled and approved
is slim given the recommendations, I am requesting that the issue be dismissed
from the agenda altogether. Should this item not be dismissed I ask that it not be
tabled and instead approved based on the following.
We have spent almost $10,000 getting our sidewalk café ready to open. The city
Manager has been aware of the ongoing struggle we have had to get this done.
We were allowed to continue to spend money and purchase all the components
necessary to furnish the outdoor café, and even got approval from the Manager
to move our light poles at a substantial cost to make way for the café. At no time
were we ever told that the liquor license extension would be a problem? We even
submitted an application several weeks ago to get the ball rolling, our outdoor
café portion was approved but conveniently our liquor license request was left off
the council agenda at that time, unknown to us. We had to again reapply for the
license further holding up our café by two weeks. In that time frame I was asked
to finish the replacement of the light poles in anticipation of opening the café by
Assistant City manager Cindy Steinhauser. Then with only days left before the
council meeting I am told that the recommendation is to table the license holding
us up another month. With it already this late in the year, tabling this issue to
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September 6 will leave us very little time to operate the outdoor café for the rest
of the year and recoup the money that has been spent. Further, leaving the
fencing system up will only add to potential problems, damage and additional
costs. (Our fence system has already been torn down once costing thousands of
dollars). Since the liquor license extension has nothing to do with our bar (the
area of our business under so much scrutiny) and is only viable with our
restaurant, it is obvious and therefore in my opinion intentional that the request to
table is only being issued to “teach us a lesson” and show us who’s in charge in
this city, using the damage of our own wasted financial resources against us.
The memo states several reasons why the Chief and the City Manager would like
this item tabled. Again as in the past the CFS or call for service are detailed.
Again we are disturbed by the weight that these calls for service seem to carry
with the police department and the city of Dubuque and the inaccurate picture
that these calls for service seem to paint. Again as in the past, there were calls
for traffic related service, parking lot issues, suspicious activity in the area, theft,
and the need for extra attention from the police department. What do these
exactly mean? Why are parking, traffic, and theft calls even part of this list? Is it
solely to paint a “bad apple” picture of Bricktown? I wonder how many parking
calls the Kennedy Mall has in a year? Is it safe to assume that when a neighbor
calls about a suspicious person in the area that that individual must have been
doing something wrong at Bricktown? Why would a traffic accident on the corner
of third and Main Street even be mentioned in the same breath as Bricktown?
Again I have to question how these calls for service are in any way related to our
liquor license? We ask our customers to leave the premises about 1:30 a.m. and
a majority of them wait out side for cabs and rides. Further many of Main streets
other bar patrons leave their respective bars and congregate near Bricktown to
wait for cabs, since our facility is the “standard” pick up spot on lower Main. I
think you would agree that a person who causes trouble in the streets outside of
Bricktown is not necessarily our responsibility and should not reflect on Bricktown
in a negative manor. After all we cannot control individual people and their
actions. The CFS is simply a way for the police department to make us look bad
and an excuse to continue their relentless attack of our business.
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On July 7 the memo states that at 2:01 A.M. the police investigated a concern
of employees serving alcohol after hours. What strikes me here is that in 59
seconds the police were able to make a determination that there was an after
hours alcohol party happening at Bricktown. The memo states that three
separate bar managers were cited for making alcohol available and one bar
manager was arrested. Interestingly enough there were only two bar managers
on duty and not one of them was arre4sted. The officers made assumptions like
usual and started writing tickets randomly. My partner was arrested because he
would not allow the officers into our private offices (on advice from our attorney),
offices that are required by state law to be entered with a search warrant. No
warrant was obtained because there was no reason to issue one. We will
contend that the tickets were issued prior to 2:00 a.m. and only because there
was open bottles and glass of beer on the tables and counter tops. Like EVERY
bar in town that is even half as busy as we usually are it takes us until 3:00 a.m.
most nights to get our bar cleaned up and free of all old bottles etc. This was just
another excuse to write us some tickets. We intend to successfully fight and win
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each and every ticket issued July 7, we have video evidence and statements
that we feel confident will vindicate us in this matter. One other point about the
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July 7 incident, it is a PENDING case against us, and for that reason alone it is
our opinion that it is certainly not fair to use that against us to table our request.
You were all given a recent report of the night of July 7th by Mr. Van Milligan, I
was informed by a council member that in that report it states that I was called by
the police and asked to come down to Bricktown that night. This is false and
phone records could prove that. Further, no where in the report does it tell you
that certain officers were verbally abusive to our employees and managers (I
have written statements from each manager) telling them that they were working
for a bunch of “assholes” and “jerks”. That they should get a new job because
they are taking us down etc. Unfortunately there are several officers (officer
Lemkee and Stiles come to mind) who are very much out to get us for one
reason or another and will continue to do so as long as they go unchecked.
Again, unfortunately we cannot control or change those people with those
attitudes towards our business.
The police spend a very large amount of time in and around Bricktown. On one
particular night between the hours of 9:30 and 1:30 a.m. a police car or multiple
cars were circling Bricktown every 3.5 minutes (we have this documented). A
typical Saturday night you will find 3-4 police patrol cars out side our building
from 1:00 – 2:30 a.m. That is excessive no matter how you look at it. Is all this
attention really just? For the potential to catch a few kids urinating in public,
drinking, etc. It seems that other crime has taken a back seat in the evening
hours to simple misdemeanors. Our customers wait outside for cabs as opposed
to driving, and they are subject to continued harassment and arrest.
Bottom line is we certainly have problems that we do need to address. We have
put in place several key costly procedures and rules to help us with the problems
we do have at Bricktown, problems we have some form of control over. It is our
hope to continue to provide Dubuque with wonderful dining and entertainment
options for many years to come.
Thank you for your time.
Sincerely, I am
Scott A. Neuwoehner
President
Bricktown Brewery