What happened at the Liquor Board on June 23, 2016.

On the merits, Commissioner Greenfield voted to deny the renewal of the license. He said that Mr. Kim talked a lot about what he will do in the future but did not practice good faith in dealing with his neighbors. He knew that the community had significant concerns, and a couple of checks to the community association was not sufficient to address those concerns. Commissioner Moore stated that she was torn on her decision. The testimony and letters were overwhelmingly negative, and the balance of the good has not been very well demonstrated. Moore said that the MOU process was Mr. Kim’s second chance, which he did not take advantage of. Moore noted that the windows of the building are boarded up, which decreases the visibility of what is happening outside. Said Moore, there has been at least a year of opportunity to make things better, but it hasn’t happened. She concluded that “we ask communities to suffer a lot” and that, in some cases, “we’re asking too much of people.” She joined Commissioner Greenfield in his choice not to renew the license.

Chairman Matricciani had a written decision for the license renewal as well. He noted that it was not an easy case. The protest is supported by neighborhood associations, including those representing Waverly and Guilford; the license is supported by local business people and patrons. He noted the troubled history of the bar, including the 2015 suspension and reopening. Matricciani stated that the licensee had offered some explanations and done some renovations, but that he had missed the point. The Chairman said that the problems are typical of a package goods and lounge establishment in a busy urban neighborhood but that they were not being addressed adequately to protect the public health and safety of the community. In his judgment, the issues that Patricia Taylor, former WIA president, raised in her testimony, are not impossible to resolve. They included: (1) trash cleanup, (2) early hours when schoolchildren pass by, (3) drunken patrons on the outside of the bar, and (4) boarded windows. Matricciani voted to renew the license, but he said that if he had been in the majority, he would instruct the Board’s counsel to file a contempt motion, due to Mr. Kim’s failure to come to an agreement with the community association, which he interpreted the consent judgment to require.

Constitutionality of Baltimore City voter registration requirement: In a 2013 case, Yim v. Tuzeer, the Maryland Court of Special Appeals noted that the voter registration requirement for licensees may be unconstitutional, as applied to noncitizens, but the court avoided deciding that issue directly. The BLLC has enforced the voter registration provision haphazardly, if at all, and has no written policy on its opinion of the law’s constitutionality, either broadly or as applied to noncitizens. The agency must decide what its interpretation of the law is, reduce it to writing, and then apply it consistently to all.

Commissioner Moore asked about the buyers and sellers of the license. Woo explained that Mr. Cho is the current owner of the license and is selling almost all of his interest to Ms. Kim but is staying on the license for a while as a 0.5% owner to advise the new owner. Moore noted that the application stated that there will be no employees, so she asked who will be running the establishment. Mr. Woo replied that Ms. Kim will run the establishment, perhaps with some help from her husband, who is also experienced.

Mr. Cho admitted that he or his wife had served an undercover police cadet 15 years ago but said that there had been no problems since then.

The business had been a vape shop until December 15, which neighbors had opposed at a hearing on April 30, 2015. The restaurant opened in May 2016, under the vape pub’s license, which is under Mr. Mastervich’s name. They filed an application to transfer the ownership of the business in March 2016. Mr. Akras pointed to a letter from the owners that the former establishment stopped operating February 19, 2016. Mr. Mastervich testified that the letter was correct and that his December date that he had given to the commissioners verbally was incorrect. Once the application to transfer the license was filed, that tolled the 180 days under the statute.

Mugavero described his business as a sandwich shop, that has been at the location since 1947. The property, business and license are currently owned by a family trust, controlled by Mr. Mugavero and his sister.

Commissioner Moore noted that the record shows that the application was made on the 178th day after the closure of the business, so, within the statutory time period.

Commissioner Moore expressed concern about “multiple layers of funky management” that led to the BG&E issue that may bring Mr. Zabkowski back before the Board.

The landlord for the building in which Parts and Labor is located has decided to ask the City to close part of 26th Street in order to create a large outdoor plaza area. Parts and Labor is requesting to be able to serve alcohol at outdoor tables in this plaza. The establishment has entered into a Memorandum of Understanding with GRIA and the Charles Village Civic Association about the specifics of the outdoor seating.

Commissioner Greenfield asked how the business plans to address trash that may be created outside. Mr. Polyoka responded that he has been a manager at Woodberry Kitchen, which also has outdoor seating, and he learned to manage trash there. There will be clearly labeled bins for compost, trash, and recyling outside. He added that helping to look after community members in the area is an important part of their mission, so they will help people who may be wandering through and may need assistance, if need be. There is a problem with drug use in the area, and the restaurant has called and will call 311 and 911 whenever they need to.

The commissioners asked about how the change will impact parking. Hecker replied that the restaurant currently shares a parking lot with Single Carrot Theater. The addition of outdoor seating does not increase the parking requirement, when it comes to zoning.

The two GRIA officers and community members testified that they are thrilled with the addition of the plaza, since they want to encourage walking and local businesses. They believe that the outdoor seating makes the area safer, and they will be working with Parts and Labor on more traffic calming measures to increase safety.

Commissioner Moore asked whether there are any issues relating to the nearby CSX rail lines. Mr. Polyoka responded that there are not, but that they would love CSX to make their fence look nicer.

Violation of AE Rule 3.05(a): Incorporation of Liquor License Rules and Regulations to Applicable Licensees- January 12,2016- At approximately 7:45 PM,The Baltimore Sheriffs Office, and the BLLC conducted random, joint investigations of establishments to determine if licensees would sell alcoholic beverages to minors.The joint task force responded to the establishment and sent Baltimore City Sheriff volunteer Tyler White, who is under the age of 21, into the establishment to attempt to purchase an alcoholic beverage(s). At that time Mr. White entered he establishment and asked to purchase a “Bud Light.” Utilizing a departmental $20 bill, Mr.White purchased the alcoholic beverage for $7.00. Mr. White was then provided a Bud Light bottle by the bartender/store clerk.Mr. White then communicated to the task force of the sale. Members of the task force entered the establishment and notified the bartender/store clerk that an alcoholic beverage had just been sold to a minor and it would be reported to the BLLC. The task force then recovered the marked currency and returned both the alcoholic beverage to the bartender and the change that was provided to Mr. White.