Melissa Bailey File Photo
Taurus Cafe patron “Rev.”
The next time the Taurus Cafe appeals to the state to renew its liquor license, the city police chief may get the chance to lobby against it, according to a bill approved Wednesday by the state Senate.
The amended bill requires New Haven bars and restaurants to submit their liquor permit applications and renewals to the city’s police chief, in addition to the state Department of Consumer Protection.
The measure, which would create a pilot program in New Haven, seeks to address the concerns police have with shootings and stabbings near some bars and clubs.
It could be nicknamed the “Larry Livingston Bill,” for the Newhallville bar owner whom Mayor John DeStefano has long sought to put out of business on Winchester Avenue, citing a history of crime outside the club. After the state blocked Livingston from renewing his liquor license, a friend of his quietly applied to reopen the Taurus Cafe, without the knowledge of the mayor or police chief.
Melissa Bailey File Photo
Looney (left) and DeStefano at the March press event promoting the bill.
Citing the Taurus as Exhibit A, Mayor DeStefano and Police Chief Frank Limon renewed an effort this year to get more input over the state process. When DeStefano and Limon announced their support for the bill at a downtown press conference, they met outrage from one downtown bar owner who feels he’s being targeted — and has now filed a federal discrimination lawsuit against the city.
Senate Majority Leader Martin Looney of New Haven, who introduced the bill, said it aims to address the city’s concerns. He said it’s already mandatory for the police chief to weigh in on temporary liquor permits, but they have no input on renewals of liquor permits.
The new bill doesn’t give the police chief the right of refusal over any liquor permit, but the Department of Consumer Protection would have to consider any comments submitted by the police chief when it makes a decision to renew a permit.
Sen. Kevin Witkos, R‑Canton, said he supported the legislation, but only for the city of New Haven.
“New Haven has difficulty with some establishments,” Witkos said. “It gives the New Haven police one extra tool to combat crime.”
Witkos, a police officer, said he spoke with his police chief about the legislation and his chief opposes it. He said there were concerns the police chief would be blamed if he failed to report something or something was overlooked in granting the permit for an establishment where something horrible happened.
“This deals specifically with New Haven,” Witkos said.
But there are some club and bar owners who already feel the city’s police force has unfairly targeted them.
Pulse Owner Files Suit
On a related front, downtown club owner Jason Cutler filed suit against the city on April 26 in U.S. District Court. Cutler, who owns the Center Street Lounge, just opened a second one, Club Pulse, on the Temple Street Plaza.
Click here to read the suit.
Cutler went public with his outrage in March, when city officials held a presser in announcing their support for Looney’s bar bill. Cutler said they staged the event near his Club Pulse because they were trying to block it from opening.
As TV cameras rolled, Cutler went head-to-head with city Chief Administrative Officer Rob Smuts over what Cutler called discrimination against bars that serve a “hip-hop clientele.”
Click on the play arrow to watch their exchange.
In his suit, filed by Attorney John R. Williams against DeStefano and the City of New Haven, Cutler claims the city has violated his Constitutional rights by the “disparate treatment and selective enforcement of laws” related to his two clubs.
The suit seeks compensatory damages, equitable relief, and punitive damages against DeStefano.