Lynn eatery’s liquor license on the line

LYNN – The Licensing Board is in the process of revoking a liquor license granted to Richard Conigliaro last April to open Tony C’s, a sports-themed restaurant in memory of Conigliaro’s late brother and Red Sox legend Tony Conigliaro.Originally approved by the City Council and later given a thumbs up by the Licensing Board, a total lack of communication and advancement at the proposed eatery at 31 Stetson St., has both confused and irritated board members for close to one year.Because of that, Licensing Board Chairman Richard Coppinger said the time has come to pull the plug on the license transfer unless concrete plans and an opening date are given at a meeting scheduled for April 22 with the Conigliaros.”We’re basically calling them in because we don’t know what’s going on,” Coppinger said. “We are seriously considering canceling the license much like we revoked Anthony’s license after one year of inactivity.”In addition to the stalemate, Coppinger said an apparent lack of funding for the project is also being called into question.”We requested a report of the status of financing from EDIC because I understand they were working with the family to arrange financing,” he said. “There aren’t any signs of construction there so we are looking to revert it back to the city.”Formerly known as the New World Order Restaurant, which shared a space with the infamous Club Kahlua at 31 Stetson St., the site was the subject of a rash of police complaints and License Board action dating back to 1985.The site was also home to a former disco lounge named Studio 4.An estimated $1 million would be needed in funding to renovate the current property that is located one block away from Fraser Field and Manning Field.James Cowdell, executive director of the Economic Development & Industrial Corporation said financial support for the project has come up in conversation, but as of now, the Conigliaros do not have a pending application in place with EDIC for funding.”We’ve been receiving an awful lot of applications from bars and clubs in the city for funding and we only have limited resources to give,” he said. “So we have to pick our spots and the ones we are focusing on are located in the central business and waterfront districts?and the Conigliaros project does not fall in either area.”Attorney John Mihos, who represents Conigliaro, said he was unaware of the Licensing Board’s plans.”As far as I know, the family is still going forward with their plans and that they are getting close to the financial goal,” he said. “I’ll have to speak to the family about what is going on.”Proposed plans for the restaurant include a sports theme with televisions and games geared toward children on the first floor and a catering hall that could be rented out for parties and events on the second floor.The City Council approved the plan under the condition that the restaurant would not cater to rowdy, late night crowds, but the request for a roughly 1,200-person capacity was called into question.”The number of people definitely raised a few concerns, but the residents in the area approved the plan,” Coppinger said. “The place has a long history.”Numerous calls placed to Conigliaro over the course of several weeks were not returned.