Because I said so!
Simpson fights liquor license
GOVERNMENT | Bruce Rushton
The proprietor of a Springfield restaurant who wants to serve alcohol to gay clientele is worried about the future of his business thanks to Ward 2 Ald. Gail Simpson, who has blocked an application for a liquor license.
Simpson, who could not be reached for comment, didn’t say why she objects to a liquor license for Scandals at 1031 S. 11 th St., but she made it clear during a July 30 council committee meeting that what she says should go in her ward. After a lecture from Simpson, who shook a finger at colleagues as she spoke, the council tabled the application from Scandals, which recently moved from downtown to a building that had been boarded up.
“I want to make it real clear to every alderman sitting around this table: I’m sick and tired of everyone knowing what’s better for Ward 2 than I do,” Simpson declared angrily. “You don’t live in the ward, you don’t represent the people who live in the ward. … The common courtesy is to do as I say.”
Simpson’s ire surprised her colleagues, who appeared to have moved the application forward in a voice vote, then tabled the measure in a roll call vote held after Simpson’s outburst. After the meeting, some aldermen said that they might approve the application over Simpson’s objections in a council meeting eight days later that was held after press time.
Aaron Hurley, co-owner of Scandals, said that he doesn’t have a Plan B.
“I spent every dollar I have in purchasing
this property,” Hurley said. “This is my livelihood. This is what I do.”
The term “bar” is somewhat of a misnomer, given that Hurley has applied for a license that requires that at least 50 percent of his revenue come from food sales. He opened a restaurant in the building even before the council tabled the liquor license application. He said he plans cabaret-style shows and occasional live music in a large room upstairs that features a stage.
Hurley, who lives in an apartment adjacent to his business, said that he spoke with Simpson twice about his plans before the council tabled his application after she objected without giving a reason. He said that Simpson suggested that he convert the building to housing or open a grocery store.
“She suggested a million things she wants me to do in this building, none of which I have any knowledge of doing,” Hurley said. “The second time I talked to her, she told me that she was going to a Bible study meeting in Peoria and she would stop by on her way home. She stopped by and honked. I went outside, and invited her inside. She said ‘You still have the intent to serve liquor, so there’s no need for me to come inside.’” The building has historically been home to a bar. Simpson has long objected to new liquor licenses in her ward, but when the city last granted a liquor license for the address, in 2009, she raised no objections when the council unanimously gave permission for alcohol sales with no food-sales requirement. While Simpson has voiced concerns about the number of liquor licenses in her ward, city records show that just two of the city’s 10 wards have fewer liquor licenses than Ward 2.
Ward 1 Ald. Frank Edwards said that the owners of Scandals deserve to know the basis for Simpson’s opposition. He said he favored an up-or-down vote on the application.
“I think these people deserve to have their day in court,” Edwards said. “What do we need a city council for if each alderman does whatever they want? Do you want the city to be divided into 10 wards or do you want a city government? That’s the choice.”
The city now has just one bar catering to a gay clientele. Ward 6 Ald. Cory Jobe, Springfield’s only openly gay elected official, voted in favor of tabling the application on July 30 but says that was only to give Simpson time to meet with the applicant to resolve differences.
Jobe said that he patronized Scandals when it was a downtown bar and sees no reason that it should not be allowed to operate on Eleventh Street in a neighborhood that needs revitalization.
“Here comes someone who wants to start a business there that has had a business in our community in the past and we shut the door on them,” Jobe says. “For no reason. Give us a reason why.”
Contact Bruce Rushton at [email protected].
