The Safety and Licensing Committee met 02/14/2024. They had one public appearance by the owner of McGuinness Irish Pub to discuss the 50 point demerit alcohol license violation he incurred for being open after hours/failing to vacate.
The discussion was brief, but I have prepared a transcript for download:
Matt, the owner of the establishment, spoke briefly. He was very apologetic and said the violation was the result of a mistake. He resides in the same building as the bar and had several friends visiting from out of town. The bar and building were closed up, the lights were out, and there were three bartenders cleaning up the pub. He had thought that because he lived in the building it was okay to have his friends upstairs with him. He had not been aware that no one could be in the building. He apologized.
Assistant City Attorney Zak Buruin said that the information Matt shared was consistent with his understanding of the facts of the case. He noted that he was not aware of any further issues since the points were assessed, and if this had been the result of a misunderstanding he expected there to be no further issues.
Alderperson Alex Schultz (District 9) said he understood that mistakes happen and that sometimes a business owner might not become aware of certain rules until an incident occurs. He noted that McGuiness had been assessed 50 demerit points, but penalties did not become significant until an establishment had accrued 150 demerit points. He was not aware of McGuiness having any issues in the past, “So, this is one of those one offs where you learn from a mistake and you’ll keep doing good business as you’ve done in the past.”
[I’m a little surprised to find out you can’t have friends over after bar close if you live over your bar.]
View full meeting details and video here: https://cityofappleton.legistar.com/MeetingDetail.aspx?ID=1147938&GUID=9375DD3E-CF77-4DB8-AD02-10D3B1332BC8
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