Saugus selectman wants hearings on club troubles

SAUGUS – Selectman Michael Kelleher said Monday he planned to call for an emergency meeting so the Board of Selectmen could discuss show cause hearings for the town’s two troubled nightclubs.Oasis and Tabu Ultra Lounge, both on Route 1 north, kept police officers busy this weekend with an alleged shooting at Oasis and a fight and noise complaints at Tabu.While the board is scheduled to meet on April 8, Kelleher said he thought that was too far away.”It’s extremely concerning,” he said. “We’ll have to schedule the hearing, post it, give (the clubs) notification, it all takes a while. Waiting until next week to get it started is unacceptable.”But Chairman Donald Wong, who also holds a liquor license as co-owner of Kowloon, was not quite so quick to act.Wong said he is talking with police and with the clubs themselves and would like to gather all the pertinent information before he jumps the gun to show cause hearings.”Of course I’m concerned,” he said. “I would like to find out the legal procedures though and if these problems can be rectified without hearings. And if they can’t, I trust we have a board that will do the right thing.”Wong said, in the end, he would likely call a meeting before the week was out, but he didn’t want to rush into it.Selectman Stephen Castinetti said he didn’t think the board could make a decision before the police finished their investigation anyway.Police Lt. Michael Annese said the shooting at Oasis, as well as a gang-related incident at the Square One Mall, were still under investigation.”People have been buzzing about it and they want us to take some action but we can’t really take any action until the police investigation is completed,” Castinetti said. “I would suspect we will be dealing with this. It doesn’t look like we’ll get around it.”Ironically, Oasis is already scheduled to appear before the board on April 8 to request extending its hours. The club is requesting permission to operate a juice bar between 2 a.m. and 6 a.m.It is likely the alleged shooting will not play in the club’s favor.Kelleher said he hopes to meet as early as Wednesday or possibly Thursday to discuss events at both clubs.”We have no choice,” he said. “It’s the right thing to do.”