What happened at the Liquor Board on November 14, 2013

Chairman Fogleman questioned the applicant further about her live entertainment request. Ms. Robinson testified that she has asked for permission for karaoke, a DJ and dancing. The applicant has also asked for permission to use the second floor of the building for part of the establishment. She told the board that the capacity for the first floor is 25 and the capacity for the second floor is around 30 people. She does not yet have zoning approval to use the second floor. The applicant is planning to manage the bar herself and to hire a day manager. The day manager who she is planning to hire has no management experience and no prior bar or restaurant experience. The current licensee, Mr. Cosell, will be acting as a mentor while she gets the business started. Commissioner Smith asked, “is it fair to say that [Mr. Cosell] is temporarily your daytime manager?” Ms. Robinson replied, “yes, he’s there.”

The applicant paid $30,000 total for both the business and the real estate. Chairman Fogleman asked Ms. Robinson to submit an amended application to provide details about the real property purchase (i.e., the purchase price, financing information, etc.) which was missing from the application.

Chairman Fogleman checked the character witness information as well as the good standing of the applicant’s corporate entity.

Chairman Fogleman asked the applicant to amend a form to include more financial details on the project. He also noticed that two of the character witnesses’ names did not match the names on the Board of Elections’ voter rolls. Mr. Prevas provided further information to show that the character witnesses were, in fact, registered to vote (They had signed under their middle names but were registered to vote under their legal names.).

Chairman Fogleman added, “there’s one little thing. It’s not so little to some. Tell me what’s going on with the LLC.” Mr. Prevas explained that there was some confusion with filing the annual Personal Property Return; the LLC is a Delaware LLC, which is able to do business in Maryland, and there was a mixup with the identification number of the LLC. Mr. Prevas promised that the matter would soon be resolved, if it wasn’t already.

Chairman Fogleman noted that All Stars Bar and Grill is in good standing with the State Department of Assessments and Taxation.

Mr. Kodenski, for the applicant, informed the Board that the address in question has had a liquor license since 1934, which is when Prohibition was repealed. The current licensee, Mr. Doyle Farnsworth, has been operating in the building for 19 years. The applicant, Mr. Anderson Davis, testified as to his experience with many bars and restaurants throughout his career. Within a two-block radius of the proposed establishment Mr. Davis owns eighteen properties. The hours of operation of the establishment will be 7AM-midnight. Most of the emphasis for this restaurant will be on food, and he testified that he wants to make the place a cornerstone of the community. He submitted a proposed menu to the Board. Mr. Davis plans to do some repair to the building, mostly cosmetic, and to install security cameras which will be available to the Baltimore City police at any time. Mr. Davis had lived in East Baltimore “all of his life, up until 10 years ago” and has met with the local community associations. Mr. Kodenski provided the Board with a petition in favor of the ownership transfer, signed by more than 200 people. Mr. Davis plans to employ six people. Mr. Kodenski submitted some photographs of the inside of the bar.

Mr. Julius Henson objected to the admission of the petition, because he noted that many of the names on the petition were written in the same handwriting. He also pointed out that the character witnesses on the application do not live in the Berea neighborhood. The applicant correctly replied that the law does not require the character witnesses to live in the community.

Chairman Fogleman, looking at the petition, noted, “it does appear to me that many of the addresses look like they’re in similar handwriting,” adding, “I’m not an expert.” The applicant insisted that the signatories filled in their names individually, and that he sent people door to door to collect the signatures.

Mr. James Brown, the person hired to be the chef at the new establishment, testified that he gathered signatures door-to-door. He told the Board that people in the neighborhood who do not drive desperately need a dining experience other than the ones present, which serve chicken wings and other unhealthy foods. Another community member, in favor of the application, testified that she couldn’t think of another food establishment convenient to the neighborhood; community members against the application began to contradict her from the audience. Chairman Fogleman interrupted them, saying “It’s not the Price is Right; she can’t take suggestions from the audience.” Several other community members testified in favor of the transfer.

Mr. Henson, on behalf of the community association, presented a six-page petition with 108 signatures against the transfer application. He also submitted a letter from City Councilman Branch in support of the community association’s position. Mr. Kodenski pointed out that the community association’s petition doesn’t provide a reason why the community is against the transfer. Mr. Henson called a handful of community witnesses to testify in opposition to the transfer. Community members complained of problems with trash and debris. The establishment is located on a one-way street, and the community was concerned about increased car traffic. The witnesses were also concerned about foot traffic up and down the alley behind the establishment. Another witness testified that she had lived in her home in Berea since 1956. There are parking issues, and problems with people leaving liquor bottles at the front of people’s homes. She said, “we don’t want any food establishments… There are ways of getting food. We want to shut down every bar in the city and send them to the strip malls.” The pastor of a local church testified that the community is “surrounded in bars. Where there’s drinking, there’s drunkenness. Folks act crazy.” Some of the protestants stated that they had never seen the people in favor of the establishment before, hinting that they did not live in the community. Mr. Henson concluded that the protestants “believe that the community has the right to self-determination” and asked the Board to deny the transfer.

Commissioner Jones, in dissent, added that both sides put on a pretty good case. He said that people who live in a neighborhood for a long period of time have proven their devotion to the community. They are a foundation for the community. He did not elaborate more on why he voted to oppose the transfer.

Agent Donald Fitzgerald, formerly of the Liquor Board, testified that on August 5, 2013, the Baltimore Police Vice unit sent undercover officers into the establsihment. The police informed Mr. Fitzgerald by telephone that there were strippers inside the establishment, though the business did not have a valid adult entertainment license. Mr. Fitzgerald provided some photographs to the Board. There were dollar bills on the floor, and, he added, “unfortunately, there was a bag of condoms upstairs.” The dancers were not employees of the licensed establishment; there were no employee records for them or for the security staff.

There was another incident on August 11, but the police officer who was present at the establishment on that date did not appear for the Liquor Board hearing because he was not summonsed.

Chairman Fogleman said to the licensee, “you’ve got convictions and charges piling up now. It’s not appearing like your son or your manager are acting like serious businessmen. Should the Board see you here in the future for these kinds of violations, you may not have a liquor license.” In response, the licensee started to disagree with the police officers about the bag of condoms that they allegedly found, and Chairman Fogleman interrupted him to exclaim, “We’re talking about breasts, exposed breasts!”