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HomeMy WebLinkAboutLiquor Licensing Authority - Minutes - 07/20/1988LIQUOR LICENSING AUTHORITY MINUTES Regular Meeting - July 20, 1988 6:35 p.m. A regular meeting of the Liquor Licensing Authority was held on Wednesday, July 20, 1988, in the Council Chambers of the Fort Collins Municipal Building. The following members were present: Bullard, Cooper, Denmark, Gadsby, Garber, Poncelow, and Spaulding. Staff Members Present: Kathy Allin, City Attorney's Office Rita Knoll, City Clerk's Office Ken Murray, Police Department Consent Calendar This calendar is intended to expedite the hearings and allow the Authority to spend its time and energy on the more controversial items on a lengthy agenda. Anyone may request an item on this calendar be "pulled" off the Consent Calendar and considered separately. Items pulled by anyone in the audience, the Authority, or staff will be discussed immediately following the Consent Calendar. Items of extreme controversy will be discussed near the end of the meeting under Pulled Consent Items. 1. Consider approving the minutes of the June 15 1988 regular meeting. 2. Registration of Manager: a. Jeffrey Miller - The Junction, 518 West Laurel. Authority member Bullard stated members of the Authority had requested both items be removed from the consent calendar for individual consideration. Consider Approving the Minutes of the June 15 1988 Regular Meeting Authority member Spaulding requested a correction on page 2 of the minutes relating to the expansion of premises for The Sports Page to reflect that the expansion will add 820 square feet. Authority member Poncelow made a motion, seconded by Authority member Spaulding, to approve the minutes of the June 15, 1988 regular meeting as amended. Yeas: Bullard, Poncelow, and Spaulding. Nays: None. Abstain: Cooper, Denmark, Gadsby, and Garber. THE MOTION CARRIED. • • July 20, 1988 Registration of Manager The Junction, 518 West Laurel Authority member Bullard questioned Mr. Miller about the delay in filing his application for registration. Jeffrey Miller, general manager, stated he was in training prior to becoming manager of The Junction on April 13, 1988. He stated he was unaware of the requirement to file his registration application within 30 days of his employment as manager and noted he completed the paperwork as soon as it was provided by his employer. He stated he believed he was now familiar with the Colorado liquor laws. Chairman Bullard suggested Mr. Miller inform the license holders that they have technically violated the liquor code by failing to register the new manager within 30 days. Authority member Spaulding made a motion, seconded by Authority member Poncelow, to approve Jeffrey Miller as manager of The Junction. Yeas: Bullard, Cooper, Denmark, Gadsby, Garber, Poncelow, and Spaulding. Nays: None. THE MOTION CARRIED. Change of Corporate Structure The Junction, 518 West Laurel Larry Hennessy stated he would be assuming the position of vice-president and secretary of the Fort Collins Junction, Inc. due to the resignation of William Edmiston on November 1, 1987. He noted Arthur Wong has purchased 50% of the stock from Mr. Edmiston. Mr. Hennessy stated he is the regional manager for Concept Restaurants which manages Old Chicago, The Prime Minister, and The Junction and is familiar with the liquor code. Authority member Spaulding made a motion, seconded by Authority member Garber, to approve the change of corporate structure for the Fort Collins Junction, Inc., dba The Junction, 518 West Laurel. Yeas: Bullard, Cooper, Denmark, Gadsby, Garber, Poncelow, and Spaulding. Nays: None. THE MOTION CARRIED. Special Events Permit (3.2%) for Eyeopener's Kiwanis Club - September 24 1988 Warren Jones, representing the Fort Collins Eyeopener's Kiwanis Club, stated the Eyeopener's Kiwanis Club sponsors an annual Oktoberfest event in the Oak Street Plaza. He stated they would be serving 3.2% beer, bratwurst, German sausage, sauerkraut, etc. He noted this is the llth year for this event and that he was not aware of any problems or liquor -2- • • July 20, 1988 violations during the past 10 years. He stated experienced club members would be monitoring the event to ensure that underage individuals will not be served and that alcohol is not carried outside of the boundaries of the event. Mr. Jones stated off -duty police officers would be employed as security for the serving of liquor and money handling. Authority member Spaulding made a motion, seconded by Authority member Gadsby, to approve the Special Events Permit (3.2%) for the Eyeopener's Kiwanis Club from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. on September 24 at Oak Street Plaza. Yeas: Bullard, Cooper, Denmark, Gadsby, Garber, Poncelow, and Spaulding. Nays: None. THE MOTION CARRIED. Special Events Permits (Liquor) for Downtown Business Association, August 6 1988 Paul Batchelor, representing the Downtown Business Association, described the Downtown Business Association and stated the Association is a non-profit organization. He stated the first event is the ethnic food festival featuring entertainment and ethnic food booths in Old Town Square. He stated the second event will be a performance by the Fort Collins Symphony on the roof of the Parking Garage. Mr. Batchelor stated volunteers for both events will be trained in examining identification. He noted wine and beer will be served at the food fair, and wine will be served at the Symphony concert. He spoke of plans to control access to the areas where liquor will be sold and consumed. Assistant City Attorney Kathy Allin pointed out that the Certificate of Good Corporate Standing that is required to accompany each application was filed with the City Clerk's Office on July 19. She noted that the certificate is for the corporation known as Fort Town and questioned whether the Downtown Business Association itself has a Certificate of Good Corporate Standing. Greg Denton, attorney representing the Downtown Business Association, stated Fort Town is the appropriate name of the corporation which is doing business as the Downtown Business Association. Authority member Bullard requested a letter of clarification be filed with the City Clerk's Office prior to processing the application to the Colorado Department of Revenue. Authority member Spaulding made a motion, seconded by Authority member Poncelow, to approve the special events permit for Fort Town, Inc., dba Downtown Business Association, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on August 6 in Old Town Square. Yeas: Bullard, Cooper, Denmark, Gadsby, Garber, Poncelow, and Spaulding. Nays: None. THE MOTION CARRIED. -3- • • July 20, 1988 Authority member Poncelow made a motion, seconded by Authority member Cooper, to approve the special events permit for Fort Town, Inc., dba Downtown Business Association, from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. on August 6 at 102 Remington. Yeas: Bullard, Cooper, Denmark, Gadsby, Garber, Poncelow, and Spaulding. Nays: None. THE MOTION CARRIED. Final Hearing for a Hotel -Restaurant License for Toppers, 313 West Drake Road Greg Denton, attorney representing the applicant, called his first witness. Leonard A. Fournell, owner, was sworn and stated he was the president and 100% stockholder of LAF Enterprises. He described his 22-year background in the restaurant business and noted he was currently operating the Kettle Restaurant in Fort Collins. He spoke of his past experience with liquor -licensed establishments. Mr. Fournell stated the restaurant will be a combination sports bar/coffee shop/dinner house catering to the over 35 crowd. He described the menus available in each area of the restaurant. Mr. Fournell spoke of the training provided to the employees who will be serving liquor and noted he will be acting as the manager of the establishment. Mr. Fournell submitted Applicant's Exhibit B which was identified as pictures of the exterior of the building and the patio area. He spoke of renovations to the building to comply with health codes and to obtain a liquor license. He noted more than 25% of the revenue at Toppers will be from the sale of food. Brenda Rowe, office manager of Oedipus, Inc., was sworn and submitted Applicant's Exhibit A which was identified as a written report which outlined the procedures followed in performing a survey of the relevant neighborhood and the results of the survey. Applicant's Exhibits C through F were identified as the petitions that were circulated in the neighborhood. She spoke of the process used during petitioning and stated approximately 95% of the neighborhood favored issuance of the license. Authority member Poncelow made a motion, seconded by Authority member Cooper, to approve the hotel -restaurant license for LAF Enterprises, Inc., dba Toppers, 313 West Drake Road. Yeas: Bullard, Cooper, Denmark, Gadsby, Garber, Poncelow, and Spaulding. Nays: None. THE MOTION CARRIED. Authority member Poncelow made a motion, Garber, to approve the final resolution Bullard, Cooper, Denmark, Gadsby, Garber, None. THE MOTION CARRIED. seconded by Authority member as read by title only. Yeas: Poncelow, and Spaulding. Nays: -4- • • July 20, 1988 Final Hearing for a Hotel -Restaurant License for Club Columbine, 1307 East Prospect Jay Witlen, co-owner, was sworn and stated he is the president of JJJ Club, Inc. Mr. Witlen noted he is currently the owner of An American Bistro which has a hotel -restaurant license. He spoke of the offer he received from the Fort Collins Club to take over the food and beverage operation at the Fort Collins Club. He stated the availability of liquor is meant as an enhancement to the exercise and food facilities at the Club. Mr. Witlen spoke of the areas to be included in the licensed premises and spoke of the measures taken to prevent liquor being removed from the licensed premises. He stated 75% to 80% of the revenue at Club Columbine will be from the sale of food and described the food items that will be available. He stated the co-owner, Jackie Witlen, will be managing the premises until a manager is selected. In response to a question from the Authority, Assistant City Attorney Kathy Allin noted that the applicant is required to submit detailed drawings of the premises to be licensed. She stated the application could be approved contingent upon submittal of a revised drawing of the licensed premises. Brenda Rowe, office manager of Oedipus, Inc., submitted Applicant's Exhibit A which was identified as a written report setting out how the survey was conducted and the results of the survey, and Applicant's Exhibit B identified as petitions circulated within the relevant neighborhood. Assistant City Attorney Kathy Allin stated she could not approve Applicant's Exhibit B based on testimony by Ms. Rowe that each circulator signed the attached affidavit prior to circulating each petition. She noted the affidavit specifically states that each signature was witnessed by the circulator and therefore the affidavit should not be signed prior to the circulation of the petition. Ms. Allin stated the Authority could allow the applicant to submit new affidavits as a contingency of approval. Ms. Rowe stated approximately 91% of the neighborhood favored issuance of the license. In response to a question from the Authority, Ms. Rowe indicated she made an error in using a map which represents 3.2% fermented malt beverage licenses. She stated the map was used only to show the site location, and that the petition clearly states the application is for a hotel -restaurant license. Jackie Witlen, co-owner, was sworn and stated she spoke with the petition circulators prior to the circulation of the petitions. She stated she and the circulators discussed in detail the provisions of the license. She stated they spoke specifically about the fact that the application is for a hotel -restaurant license and that the circulators questioned why a tavern license was not being maintained at that location. (Secretary's Note: Applicant's Exhibits A and B were accepted conditioned upon receipt of a properly executed affidavit from each circulator.) -5- 0 • July 20, 1988 Mr. Witlen submitted blueprints and diagrams of the Fort Collins Club including the outside patio area and the areas to be licensed, identified as Applicant's Exhibit C. (Secretary's Note: These drawings were obtained from the file of the previously licensed establishment known as The Gallery.) Assistant City Attorney Kathy Allin stated the applicant was marking the drawing to clearly outline the areas to be licensed. She stated that drawing and an oral description by Mr. Witlen should be sufficient for the Authority to understand what the licensed premises would include. Mr. Witlen approached the Authority and described the floor plan of the Fort Collins Club and the areas to be included in the licensed premises. He elaborated on security measures to ensure minors are not served and that liquor is not removed from the licensed premises. Assistant City Attorney Kathy Allin noted that the tavern license that exists at 1307 East Prospect doesn't expires until October 28, 1988. She stated instead of treating this as a new application, it should be considered as (1) a change of class of license from a tavern license to a hotel -restaurant license, (2) a transfer of ownership of the license from Pat O'Mara to JJJ Club, Inc., and (3) a trade name change from The Gallery to Club Columbine. She stated the procedures to be followed would be the same under either scenario. Ms. Allin indicated that the motion required would be worded differently and that a final resolution would not be necessary. Authority member Bullard stated he was not comfortable with treating the application as a change of class of license, transfer of ownership, and trade name change. In response to a question from the Authority, Ms. Allin stated it is possible for the current license holder to abandon his tavern license on the date the State approves a hotel -restaurant license for JJJ Club, Inc. at the same location. Authority member Spaulding made a motion, seconded by Authority member Garber, to approve the hotel -restaurant license for JJJ Club, Inc., dba Club Columbine, 1307 East Prospect, contingent upon the receipt of properly executed affidavits by the petition circulators, written withdrawal from the tavern license by Mr. O'Mara, and submission of a clear drawing of the licensed premises. Authority member Poncelow stated she had no problem with the moral character of the applicants and that she believed the results of the neighborhood survey to be correct. She stated, however, that she was uncomfortable with the licensed premises and the possibility of illegal liquor consumption. • • July 20, 1988 Authority member Spaulding stated she believed the Fort Collins Club employees and Club Columbine employees would provide more supervision than is available in other cases. Authority member Cooper stated he also had no problem with the moral character of the applicants and believed extensive plans have been made to control the licensed premises. He stated he could not support approval of the application because too many items were still in limbo. Authority member Poncelow made a motion, seconded by Authority member Garber, to table the final hearing for JJJ Club, Inc., dba Club Columbine, 1307 East Prospect, to August 10. Yeas: Bullard, Cooper, Denmark, Gadsby, and Poncelow. Nays: Garber and Spaulding. THE MOTION CARRIED. Show/Cause Hearing for Tone's Restaurant, 224 South College Charles Bloom, attorney representing the licensee, requested a continuance of the hearing. He stated one of his witnesses was on vacation, and another witness who was present earlier was unable to wait any longer and had left. He stated he believed his witnesses were important to his defense. Detective Ken Murray stated the City was prepared to proceed with the hearing and objected to the continuance. After discussion, Mr. Bloom and the Fort Collins Police Department agreed to proceed with the City's presentation of the case at this time. It was noted that Mr. Bloom would present his defense on August 10. Officer Jeff Groves was sworn and stated he an Officer Swihart were on duty on May 10 when they received several REDDI (Report Every Drunk Driver Immediately) reports which appeared to match the same vehicle. Officer Groves stated he and Officer Swihart received a later report that indicated the driver of the vehicle was inside the establishment known as Tony's Restaurant, 224 South College Avenue. He and Officer Swihart located the vehicle improperly parked in the rear of Tony's Restaurant. He stated they entered Tony's and made contact with Ronald Robinson, who was the owner of the vehicle and who was suspected to be the driver of the vehicle. Officer Groves noted Mr. Robinson had been contacted by Officer Swihart approximately one to two months earlier regarding a DUI arrest. Officer Groves stated Mr. Robinson was seated in a booth with a mixed drink in front of him. Officer Groves testified he witnessed Mr. Robinson take at least three drinks from the glass. He stated upon contacting Mr. Robinson it was his opinion that Mr. Robinson was intoxicated. He described Mr. Robinson as being unshaven, having extremely dirty clothing, and bloodshot and watery eyes. He stated his speech was extremely slurred and thick -tongued and the movements of his hands were very slow and -7- • • July 20, 1988 disoriented. He added Mr. Robinson had a strong odor of an alcoholic beverage on his breath. Officer Groves stated he confiscated the drink that was in front of Mr. Robinson. He stated he advised the owner of the establishment, Tony, that they were investigating a liquor law violation based on visual observations of Mr. Robinson. He stated Mr. Robinson maintained he did not drive the vehicle and that a relative drove the vehicle there and left the bar. Officer Groves stated later investigation placed Mr. Robinson behind the wheel of the vehicle, which is another incident not related to the liquor violation. Mr. Bloom cross-examined Officer Groves. Officer Groves testified to his examination of the drink and his conclusion that the drink contained alcohol. Mr. Bloom questioned the correlation between Mr. Robinson's appearance and the conclusion that Mr. Robinson was intoxicated. Officer Groves stated each element individually did not lead him to believe Mr. Robinson was intoxicated. He went on to say that a combination of all the elements combined lead him to believe that Mr. Robinson was intoxicated. Officer Mike Swihart was sworn and stated he was the acting supervisor on the evening of May 10. He stated he heard the report and the name of Ronald Robinson over the radio. He stated he was familiar with Mr. Robinson because he was involved in another incident with Mr. Robinson with the last two to three weeks. He stated he drove to the downtown area in an attempt to locate Mr. Robinson because he believed he might recognize him. He stated he and Officer Groves entered Tony's and located Mr. Robinson. He stated he spoke to Mr. Robinson about the contents of the glass and Mr. Robinson admitted the glass contained orange juice and vodka. Officer Swihart stated he detected an odor of an alcoholic beverage on Mr. Robinson's breath at the time he spoke with him. He stated Mr. Robinson agreed to go to the Police Department for a breath test and was administered several physical maneuvers which Mr. Robinson had difficulty completing. Officer Swihart stated the results of the breath test indicated a blood alcohol level of .163 which is over the DUI limit. Mr. Bloom reserved the right to cross-examine Officer Swihart on August 10 and requested a copy of Officer Swihart's police report. Officer Swihart questioned whether the Police Department should proceed with analysis of the liquid currently placed in evidence. He reserved the right to admit the results of the chemical test into evidence on August 10. Mr. Bloom stipulated that the drink provided to Mr. Robinson did contain vodka. Authority member Cooper made a motion, seconded by Authority member Garber, to continue the show/cause hearing for Tony's Restaurant, 224 South College, to August 10. Yeas: Bullard, Cooper, Denmark, Gadsby, Garber, Poncelow, and Spaulding. Nays: None. THE MOTION CARRIED. in 0 July 20, 1988 Other Business Authority member Poncelow asked whether there was support from other members of the Authority for finding a violation against The Junction for failing to register the manager in a timely manner. Following discussion, Authority member Poncelow made a motion, seconded by Authority member Spaulding, to send a letter of concern to The Junction regarding failure to register the manager within 30 days of his employment. Yeas: Bullard, Cooper, Denmark, Gadsby, Garber, Poncelow, and Spaulding. Nays: None. THE MOTION CARRIED. Authority member Spaulding stated she had observed an advertisement on the marquee of The Library advertising a "drown night". Authority member Spaulding made a motion, seconded by Authority member Poncelow, expressing concern about the advertising of "drown nights" and the potential for such events to lead to intoxication and violations of the Colorado Beer Code. Yeas: Bullard, Cooper, Denmark, Gadsby, Garber, Poncelow, and Spaulding. Nays: None. THE MOTION CARRIED. Adjournment Authority member Cooper made a motion, seconded by Authority member Garber, to adjourn. Yeas: Bullard, Cooper, Denmark, Gadsby, Garber, Poncelow, and Spaulding. Nays: None. THE MOTION CARRIED. The meeting was adjourned at approximately 10:25 a.m. vice-Lnvnrperson Secretary