Minutes, License Committee
Tuesday, February 28, 2006
8:15 A.M.
1. This meeting was called to order at 8:20 a.m. Present were Ald. Grabowski, Ald. Foeckler, Deputy Clerk Pam Bauer, Police Chief Thomas Bauer, Police Captain William Wilson, and City Engineer Wayne St. John. It should be noted that all license applicants were invited to attend the meeting; however, a representative of the Lotus Restaurant was the only one to attend.
2. The original Reserve Class B Combination license application submitted by Genesis II Restaurant, Inc., George Dalamangas, Agent, for Genesis Restaurant, 8950 S. 27th St. (formerly Acropolis) was reviewed by the committee. Pam explained that the previous owner had met with her in November to advise that he would be selling his business. This is the first instance in the City where a reserve licensee has sold a business. The original owner inquired as to whether or not he would receive a refund of his one-time $10,000 reserve license fee. Larry Haskin provided opinions that there is no provision in our code for the return of this fee. Additionally the League had originally provided an opinion that the $10,000 fee was for an “initial” issuance only, but the League then reversed their opinion to state that any future owner of a business holding a reserve license must also pay the “initial” $10,000 fee. A provisional license has been issued to the new owners to allow them to operate and other than receipt of their Wisconsin Seller’s Permit Number, their paperwork is complete. Ald. Grabowski, seconded by Ald. Foeckler, moved to grant an original reserve Class B Combination license to Genesis II Restaurant, Inc., George Dalamangas, Agent, for Genesis Restaurant, 8950 S. 27th St., with issuance subject to payment of all fees and receipt of their Wisconsin Seller’s Permit Number. All voted aye; motion carried.
3. The committee reviewed the original Reserve Class B Combination license application submitted by Lotus Restaurant, LLC, King Yee, Agent for Lotus, 9011 S. Howell Ave. (formerly Pickerman’s). A representative from Lotus was present and he stated they currently have a location on S. 76th St. The Oak Creek restaurant is undergoing remodeling and will offer both Chinese and Japanese food. Their paperwork is complete, except for receipt of their Wisconsin Seller’s Permit Number and an occupancy permit. Ald. Foeckler, seconded by Ald. Grabowski, moved to grant an original Reserve Class B Combination license to Lotus Restaurant, LLC, King Yee, Agent for Lotus, 9011 S. Howell Ave., with issuance subject to receipt of an occupancy permit, receipt of Wisconsin Seller’s Permit Number, and payment of fees. All voted aye; motion carried.
4. Due to the recent death of Dave Pemberton, agent on the Class B Combination license for American Legion Post 434, the Legion submitted a written request to approve Duane Lee Kasiske as successor agent. Mr. Kasiske currently holds a valid Operator’s license and their paperwork is in order. Ald. Foeckler, seconded by Ald. Grabowski, moved to approve the appointment of Duane Lee Kasiske as successor agent on the license issued to Oelschlaeger-Dallmann American Legion Post 434. All voted aye; motion carried.
5. The committee reviewed the renewal dog kennel application submitted by Wendy Osgood for Brentwood Animal Hospital, 318 W. Ryan Rd. Present for the discussion were Police Chief Tom Bauer and Police Captain William Wilson, Wendy Osgood and Wendy’s mother. There have been three documented complaints about barking dogs at this location. It appears to have been a seasonal issue for the last three or four years. When complaints were received at the police department, the police department viewed the situation as a grandfathering issue: the kennel was there first, barking dogs were to be expected, and residents should be aware of the area, i.e., a major highway (Howell Ave. and Ryan Rd.), the railroad tracks, a kennel and a commercial trucking company in the area. No complaints were documented. Some of the complaints may have been coming from residents on Aspen Dr. A tenant next door to the kennel has now raised the issue that the barking dogs are a violation of the noise ordinance and that the tenant is entitled to equal protection under the law. Chief Bauer felt this problem needed to be solved and not viewed as a “grandfathering” issue.
Wendy Osgood explained that the dogs are kept inside during winter, but when the weather is hot, the dogs are outside. They are free to go inside and outside as they please. Each “cage” area in the back of the building has a guillotine door and a small outside area surrounded by a 3-foot high concrete wall. The top of the outdoor concrete area is open. There are also certain breeds that are notorious for barking, and the direction of the wind does have some bearing, as well as the time of year, whether there are leaves on the trees to absorb some of the sound. Generally, the barking does occur after dark during the summer and some of the animals are barking at wild or stray animals. Osgood stated that she is not willing to lock up the animals for the summer. There is no air conditioning inside the kennel area. Bauer stated that the police will change their philosophy on handling complaints by documenting any future complaints. Captain Wilson did look at their operation and felt it could be managed. He suggested that when a complaint comes in, the animal could be placed inside.
Ald. Foeckler summarized resolving the situation by keeping known barkers inside; responding to specific complaints, and revisiting the issue with the police department and Wendy Osgood at staff level. Ald. Foeckler, seconded by Ald. Grabowski, moved to grant a renewal kennel license to Brentwood Animal Hospital, 318 W. Ryan Rd. All voted aye; motion carried.
6. Ald. Grabowski, seconded by Ald. Foeckler, moved to grant a renewal transient merchant license to Parkey’s Fish & Seafood, LLC, to sell frozen seafood at Classic Lanes, 7501 S. Howell Ave., and salespersons Sean R. Macrae and Amy Parkinson, subject to receipt of favorable police record checks. All voted aye; motion carried.
7. The committee discussed the 2006 mobile home park license for 5th Ave. Mobile Home Park, 8481 S. 5th Ave. Their license was approved at the 2/20/06 council meeting. Although internal processing of the paperwork was complete, recommended approval, and a license granted, it was later determined when the new license was to be prepared for 2006 that conditions had been placed on the 2005 license that either the encroaching trailers were to be moved or the mobile home park owners were to get appropriate zoning for the leased portion of the land (to the south) no later than 12/31/05. It was not known whether or not those conditions were met. Pam discussed the issue with Ed Ciechanowski and Wayne St. John. The park has removed several of the encroaching trailers at the back of the park and has replaced them with new trailers that have the required slab and meet setback requirements. The consensus of the committee was that if confirmation was received that the trailers were no longer encroaching, no further action would be needed. If there were outstanding issues, the item would be placed on the 3/7/06 agenda to reconsider action taken on 2/20/06. (Note: After License Committee met, this issue was again discussed with Ed on 2/28/06 and he did confirm the above information, stating they are making attempts to upgrade the park. However, without a survey of the south property line at the park owner’s expense, he felt he could not state with certainty that one or more of the trailers toward the front of the park may not be encroaching to a degree, even though the problematic trailers in the back have been made compliant.)
8. The committee reviewed the original Class B Combination license submitted by Melrose Eatery, Inc., doing business as Judy’s Family Restaurant, 6840 S. 27th St. The restaurant was sold to Melrose Eatery and the closing taken place. A provisional license has been issued to allow the business to continue to operate while the internal process is completed and the agent attends responsible beverage class. Since this application has not met the 15-day waiting period, no action was taken by the committee and a recommendation will be made for the 3/21/06 council meeting.
Ald. Foeckler, seconded by Ald. Grabowski, moved to adjourn this meeting at 9:55 a.m. All voted aye; motion carried.