Almost exactly a year ago this week, Feelgood Restaurant and Lounge owner Caesar Sanchez was in the same predicament he finds himself in today. Last year, after noise complaints from residents and visits from the local police, the Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC) Board was considering temporarily suspending Sanchez’s liquor license.
Now, the ABC plans to schedule a hearing date in May to consider the same issues.
At the April 14 Town Council meeting, Golden Avenue resident Anthony Aiello complained that he has been awakened by loud Feelgood patrons in the middle of the night.
And Barbara Napierski, a resident of Humboldt Street and frequent critic of Feelgood, complained recently to the Reporter that she had been awakened “three weekends in a row” late at night by loud patrons who had parked on her street.
“I’ve stopped calling the cops because by the time they come, the people have gotten in their cars and they’re gone,” she said. “I just want to sleep in my own house…But this problem just won’t go away.”
But Sanchez said last week that he has tried his best to be a good neighbor.
“I’ve invested my life savings into the business, and I want to make it work,” he said. “As a business owner, all I can do is ask my customers not to make noise when they leave, or not let them in if I think they’re going to cause problems. But there are some things I can’t control.”
Better than last year
Last year, when Sanchez was facing the suspension of his liquor license, he vowed to make several changes to attract more mature customers who would hopefully be more respectful of the community. Hiring better security, raising the age limit for admission, and enforcing a dress code were among the improvements Sanchez planned to make.
According to Sanchez, today, the age limit for women is 25, and 28 for men.
To get a sense of what’s happening, the Reporter visited Feelgood on Saturday, April 18. According to Sanchez Saturdays are his busiest nights.
Over nearly three hours at Feelgood on Saturday, some improvements were apparent, others were not.
Security personnel were easily identifiable, dressed all in black, and were strategically placed throughout Feelgood, which had about 200 customers. There appeared to be four or five men working security that night.
A bouncer who worked the front door thoroughly checked bags and purses with a flashlight and even unzipped inside pockets and fished around with his hand for dangerous items.
This bouncer also checked photo I.D. A second Feelgood employee then inserted the customer’s identification into an electronic devise called I.D. Check, which verified that the I.D. isn’t a fake.
To get into the weekend parties there is a modest cover, which was $5 on this night. br>
Women must be 25; men, 28.
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Dress code had been another area where Sanchez had promised to make improvements. Last year he said that people wearing excessively baggy pants, T-shirts, baseball caps, and other similar attire would not be let in. The hope was that a more sophisticated dress code would attract older patrons.
Last Saturday, most of the women wore high heels with mini dresses that were three to four inches above the knee. Several wore slacks. Bra straps were hidden. Cleavage was very minimal.
Men wore Polo shirts or dress shirts with slacks or jeans. No men wore pants that were so baggy that their underwear was showing.
One 25-year old man wore a T-shirt, but it had a blazer over it.
From 10:40 p.m. to 1 a.m. the crowd inside Feelgood remained calm and sober.
Parking still the problem
When asked where they park when they visit Feelgood, everyone interviewed mentioned either mentioned the TD Bank lot or the residential streets. It’s common for people to park five or more blocks away.
As people returned to their cars at the end of the night, many were in small groups and were talking, and sometimes laughing. Although their voices did not seem loud in the Plaza area, and one bouncer did ask some patrons to keep quiet out of respect for the neighbors, their voices carried differently as they walked away from the Plaza and onto Golden Avenue.
Finally, several customers had blaring radios playing the moment they turned on their ignitions – noise that likely awoke sleeping residents.