Saugus Selectman Horlick stands alone on lounge issue

SAUGUS – Selectman Stephen Horlick stood decidedly alone as his colleagues shot down his request to bring the owner of Jin in to answer to changes within the restaurant.Horlick made a request during Tuesday’s meeting to bring the restaurant in to answer to changes within a new lounge that he believes violate the establishment’s current licenses. Building Inspector Frederick Varone issued a letter to the board stating otherwise, but Horlick said he respectfully disagreed with his opinion.Horlick’s motion failed 3-1, with Chairman Donald Wong absent, and the issue was dropped.At issue is Orchid, a new lounge that opened within the Route 1 north restaurant several weeks ago. Horlick said he compared the changes he saw in the lounge when he visited for a license inspection last week, with plans on file and he thought there were dramatic differences.Selectmen Stephen Castinetti and Peter Rossetti, who attended the club’s opening, said they didn’t believe there were any changes that warranted a hearing on the entertainment or liquor license.According to Horlick, the bar has a capacity of 110. He argues that a new disc jockey station and new booths that are affixed to the walls change the capacity, which is reason enough to have them before the board.He also argued the addition of the disc jockey station, along with a number of new lights and speakers hanging from the ceiling, indicate construction significant enough to warrant a new hearing on the licenses.”The building inspector openly states there is no significant construction and there is an opinion from Town Counsel that there are no significant changes,” Rossetti said. “I don’t think we should be in the business of questioning the building inspector.”Kelleher said he was comfortable with Varone’s opinion and pointed out that Police Chief Domenic DiMella had expressed no concern with the restaurant.”Until we have something from the police chief or the building inspector or there is an incident, I see no reason to bring them in,” he said. “I’m not looking for trouble.”Horlick said his concern stemmed from when the license was first issued.”This is the strictest license we ever put on a restaurant because we were worried about the place turning into a (night) club,” he said.Horlick said there were two other rooms inside the restaurant that could easily be turned into nightclubs. Castinetti, however, said Horlick can’t fault a restaurant for what might happen – it had to focus on the present.Horlick made a motion that the board ask Police Lt. Stephen Sweezey his opinion on the matter, since Sweezey sat in on the meetings when the board first issued the entertainment and liquor license to the club.”He has more knowledge than basically a lot of other people have,” he said.