Anti-bar hours roll back lawsuit runs out of steam

LYNN – The lengthy lawsuit waged against the city of Lynn by local bar owners for rolling back closing time from 2 a.m. to 1 a.m. this past January is in the process of being dismissed due to a lack of funds to keep it alive.Having represented the bar licensees for nearly a year, attorney Fred Riley said owners have experienced a tremendous loss of business since the rollback and because of that could not continue to carry on a lawsuit with empty pockets.”They all spent a lot of money and a lot of time on this, but they just couldn’t afford the fight,” he said.Since the rollback took effect in January, Riley said Robert Carion’s hot spot, Cache at 224 Blossom St., closed its doors in May due to a lack of business, while the Brick Yard Bar and Grill, Fran’s Place, 47 Central, Molly McMahon’s, Four Winds Pub, Brandy Barrel Pub & Grille, and Green Tea are all on the verge of closing as well.”Carion had to walk away owing $198,000, and went from having 23 employees to four employees, to two, to closing?all due to the rollback,” he said. “I’m not trying to sugarcoat this, it’s the truth.”Riley blamed Mayor Edward J. Clancy Jr. for orchestrating the rollback and for the Licensing Board’s actions to enforce it at his behest.Clancy retorted, “It’s just common sense.””The rollback speaks for itself,” he said. “It was done for the health, welfare and safety of the 89,000 residents of the city. Lynn had become a Mecca of people rushing to the city for last call to get fueled by alcohol and that’s not a good thing.”After a series of court- ordered depositions for Clancy, all three members of the Licensing Board and Lynn Chief of Police John Suslak, which stemmed from an alleged open meeting law violation and a denied attempt to obtain a temporary restraining order against the rollback, the lawsuit seemed to hit a roadblock.Now that the lawsuit is on the outs, Riley said the owners, who have revived the Lynn Restaurant Association, are planning to wage a political war of sorts against the city in an attempt to regain that extra hour of bar time, as well as join the Chamber of Commerce.”Their goal is to have Clancy sit down with them so that he can hear their plight so they can eradicate the rollback,” Riley said. “They should never let this case die. And I’ll certainly be involved in any way they (owners) want me to be.”Clancy said while he welcomes anyone to come to his office for a chat, he does not plan to budge from his decision on the rollback.”I sincerely believe it is the best idea,” he said. “I have formed an opinion on this in my 58 years of living in the city, the 37 years that I have been able to drink (alcohol), statistics, and conversations with the Licensing Board. If they (bar owners) want to talk, okay, but that doesn’t change the facts.”Licensing Board chairman Richard Coppinger said he has noticed a significant reduction in large-scale disturbances and violence since the rollback, and said the fruits of the change will be proven for years to come.Frustrated by the turn of events, Riley said there is no doubt in his mind that Clancy’s decision is an unfair one that is destroying the economy of the city.”I question his sincerity and credibility on this decision,” he said. “He should have worked with the police and the ABCC (Alcoholic Beverages Control Commission) on this matter to target the few places with problems. But he didn’t.”