Mount Pleasant DC Forum

[MPNA]

The purpose of the hearing before the ABC Board was to hear testimony regarding two ABC establishments, Don Jaime’s and Haydee’s, on two issues; (1) whether to terminate the voluntary agreements (VA) between these establishments and the Mount Pleasant Neighborhood Alliance (MPNA); and (2) to consider allowing something called “Entertainment Endorsement” applications—i.e., to allow live music—for these establishments. MPNA testified in support of live entertainment occurring Tuesday through Thursday from 6 to 10 p.m. and Fridays and Saturdays from 6 p.m. to midnight with no moving of the tables for dancing and no cover charge. Four other protest groups testified for stricter provisions allowing weekend-only entertainment.

The nine-hour hearing began with witnesses for the licensees who spoke in favor of live entertainment seven days a week until closing hours of between 2 and 3 a.m. Testimony began with a musician claiming that he has never been allowed to play in his neighborhood because culture can only be expressed in alcohol-serving establishments. After eight years of silence, Don Jaime claimed his voluntary agreement was a fraud. Haydee claimed she was forced to sign her voluntary agreement, even though she was under the guidance of her well-known, experienced liquor attorney. Testimony was heard on how a handful of people were going to be the masters of noise control, and how expert collaborators with long-winded solutions were going to fix all the problems of the Mount Pleasant liquor universe. None of this testimony addressed public safety, trash, or outside pedestrian disturbances.

A 1,600-signature blindly-signed petition acknowledging support for a new voluntary agreement was challenged by the ABC Board because the voluntary agreement was never made available for review as the signatures were being collected. Accompanying the petition was a geo-coded map depicting the location of the signers/houses of those who signed in Mount Pleasant, tagged with a statement explaining that these signatories wanted the MPNA voluntary agreements terminated—something that was never revealed on the petition.

The Board heard from many residents who spoke about how for years, MPNA was the only civic group taking a leadership role in the community when everyone else did not—where were these groups over the last decade? We heard from neighbors who expressed real concerns about noise, fights and other issues that pour from the late night bars and how the voluntary agreements have helped improve their quality of life. We heard from the police department, which spoke on how manpower would be strained and public safety would be negatively impacted if our neighborhood had live entertainment--more people, more parking problems, and more public safety issues, trash and noise. We heard from Latino families who are trying to raise their children in our diverse community and who, while supporting live entertainment, oppose restaurants morphing into bars and nightclubs.

But at the end of the day, it isn’t about emotion, passion, or even cultural expression. It is not about what we wear or our livelihood or how many people support one side or the other. Everyone has agreed to have live entertainment—everyone has agreed on the need for a voluntary agreement. The only real issues before the board are how much live entertainment there should be and when it should happen. We do know one thing; it is likely that neither side will be completely happy with the outcome. It is in the hands of the ABC Board. Their decision might change the character of Mount Pleasant forever.

--Laurie Collins, president, Mount Pleasant Neighborhood Alliance