Anyone who holds a beer license in his or her name is responsible for everything that takes place at the location of that license. At the meeting of the Beer Board Thursday morning, Thomas Sexton, owner of Chocolate City, 27 W. 19th St., was held accountable for actions taken by Thomas Williams to whom the venue had been rented.
Mr.
Williams had a verbal agreement with the owner of Chocolate City that allowed him to use the bar on Sunday afternoons. The owner, Mr. Sexton, had been told that tequila would be given away at no charge during the games and he said that he had no knowledge that gambling would be taking place. The bar was staffed with a bartender for selling buckets of beer on those occasions.
When the police vice units and TABC board arrived with a search warrant on Oct. 26, acting on a tip, they found a sign offering “all the tequila you can drink for $5.” They also found gambling paraphernalia scattered about in the form of “tip boards” used for betting on game scores, $960 in cash Jell-O shots and untaxed moonshine stored behind the bar. The business does not have a license to sell alcohol. There also was no working land line telephone, which is a requirement of having a beer license because it is needed for 911 calls.
The business and several customers were given citations that day, one for possession of marijuana, for the illegal possession of alcohol and for the possession of gambling devices, which are forbidden in the beer code.
Some of the mistakes made that led to the citations were because of not completely reading and fully understanding the beer code, said Mr. Sexton. “Ignorance isn’t an excuse,” said board member Andre Harriman. “The moonshine was mine,” said Mr. Sexton, who told the board he took shots on Tuesdays when he was closed and doing paperwork. He said he was unaware that drinking by any employee at the location where they work is not allowed. He also failed to fully train the bartender left in charge that Sunday when he was not present, so she was unaware that she could not store alcohol for customers behind the bar.
Lieutenant Tammy Cook, who is in charge of the region where the bar is located, said before this incident the main problem that she had heard about Chocolate City was parking that spills over onto Market and several side streets. There have also been noise complaints from people driving around and speeding with loud music playing as well as noise created when live bands or DJs are performing.
She told the board that she had met with Mr. Sexton about issues, who by all accounts has always been agreeable and helpful and who wants to do the right thing. She said that she had relayed this message to the neighborhood. The raid, she said “caught us all by surprise.” “Believe none of what you hear and half of what you see,” responded Mr. Harriman.
A representative from the neighborhood association described the area as one that is in transition, now consisting of 35 percent residential property owners, 28 percent being renters and 35 percent being businesses. “We want those parties to play well together,” he said. We want businesses like Chocolate City in the area, but in a meeting with the owner, the neighbors told him some activities needed to be changed. He said the neighbors are willing to work with Mr. Sexton to make it a better business since he is open to change. He said that the neighborhood association wanted to get in on the front end of the problems so the relationships will not become adversarial.
Mr. Sexton was given the choice of a 30-day suspension that would begin Nov. 27 or to pay a fine of $1,500.
The Westside Shop, 1221 Grove St., was denied a beer license in June 2014. The new owner, Salman Abdo, has made another application for the business that will sell food and beverages in what is defined as a “food desert.” The previous owner ran into problems with the beer board when he was unable to control crowds that gathered outside the establishment. When his brother-in-law bought the business, he was denied a permit because the original owner would have been the manager and continued problems were anticipated.
Attorney Arvin Reingold told the board that his client wants the business to be a “pillar,” and has hired a local resident, Shannon Boyd, to be the manager. The store is needed there and Mr. Abdo is willing to fulfill the need, said attorney Reingold. The brother-in-law’s involvement will only be to help train Ms. Boyd during the transition period.
Just as the original owner wanted, Mr. Abdo would like to sell fresh meats, vegetables and fruits as well as beer and snacks, but attorney Reingold warned that would only be possible if it became profitable to do so. Ms. Boyd has been educated in marketing and she told the board that she grew up in the neighborhood and was tough enough to manage the people loitering around the store and to instill that in her employees with the help of security guards.
A beer license was given to Mr. Abdo on the condition that his brother-in-law would work there no longer than 30 days.
Three consumer beer permits were approved at the beer board meeting due to ownership changes. Hill City, 14 Frazier Ave., has been bought by Ashish Chaudhari. He owns several Kankus convenience stores around Chattanooga. This will be his first restaurant. It will continue to be primarily a pizza restaurant downstairs having occasional live acoustic music. Pool tables and televisions along with an outside smoking balcony will be on the second floor. The dining room will be open from 11 a.m.-9 or 10 p.m. Upstairs will be open and will serve food until 2-2:30 a.m.
The new owners of Bar Louie, 2100 Hamilton Place Blvd., were also approved for a permit to sell beer, as was Silhouette’s Bikini Sports Bar and Grill, 1401 E. 23rd St. Assistant City Attorney Keith Reisman told the manager, Ray Kinsey, that “there are certain things dancing girls can and can’t do.” Be sure to understand those things with your attorney, he advised.
Mr. Kinsey said, “There will be no nudity. The dancers will have no less apparel than you‘d wear at the beach,” he said. These girls that perform on stage are independent contractors, and “the job of these girls is to entertain and that’s all they do,” he said. When he took over the business, it was a “playhouse” but that now it is a business where he and the new owner will make their living, said Mr. Kinsey.
The application from Lee Epstein owner of City Café Diner, 7641 Lee Hwy., was tabled until the Tennessee Supreme Court makes a ruling that, if approved, would allow the 24-hour restaurant to sell beer after 3 a.m. when bars are required to close. As it stands now, if a beer license was given, the restaurant would be required to close at 3 a.m.
In preparation for MainX24, Green Spaces applied for and received approval to sell beer at the SEC Championship event to be held at 63 E. Main St. from 3- 10 p.m. and at the World Heavyweight Chili Championship which will be at 326 E. Main from 9 a.m. -5 p.m. at the OCI Furniture Building. Habitat for Humanity was also given a special event permit for Kid’s Zone to be located Craftworks Building, 201 W. Main St. from 11a.m.-3 p.m. MainX24 will take place Dec. 6.
Greenway Farms is hosting the Greenway Farms Cyclocross Race at 5150 Gann Store Road on Dec. 13. Beer sales will be allowed at this off-season biking event, which will take place from 11 am.-4 p.m.