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Board OKs Booze License for Rowdy WaHi Bar After Locals Defend Ties to Arts

FORT GEORGE — The local community board did an about-face in approving a liquor license renewal for a rowdy Broadway bar over the objections of local police — thanks in part to an outpouring of support from community members lauding the bar's contribution to the arts.

Community Board 12 voted overwhelmingly last week to approve the application for Apt. 78, located at 4447 Broadway, after several community members wrote to the board on the restaurant’s behalf and half a dozen residents came to the meeting to show their support for the establishment.

Apt. 78's owner, Jose Morales, faced scrutiny when he went before the board’s licensing committee earlier in October over a host of concerns about the space. An officer from the 34th Precinct who attended the Oct. 8 meeting noted that Apt. 78 had three violations for serving minors and multiple summonses for disorderly conduct and overcrowding. Police have also responded to violent incidents at the venue, he said.

The committee voted unanimously at the time to recommend denying the liquor license renewal.

However, locals lined up last Tuesday to sing the bar's praises as a friend to the arts.

“It’s a little-known fact, but I wouldn’t have become a member of the community board if it weren’t for Apt. 78,” said Michael Diaz, a local comedian who goes by the name Juan Bago.

Diaz, a former member of the board, said he became more involved in the community through the artist-networking events he organized at Apt. 78, which has hosted events like poetry readings and open-mic nights.

“I had 28 years in this community and I never felt like I had a home until Apt. 78,” he added.

Records of 311 calls show 92 noise complaints were filed near the business over the past year, with eight complaints filed after the Oct. 8 licensing committee meeting.

However, as Morales pointed out at the time, there are several bars in the vicinity of Apt. 78, making it difficult to distinguish the origins of the noise.

Morales also told the committee he made changes to the bar required by the State Liquor Authority after police cited him, including retraining staff and buying an ID scanner. He also voluntarily changed the closing time to midnight from 2 a.m. on weeknights.

Regardless, the committee initially voted against approving the license renewal.

But at Tuesday’s full board meeting, committee chair Aldemar Diaz said CB12 had received a large show of support for Apt. 78.

Diaz noted that Morales submitted a petition with 41 signatures from residents of the apartment building that houses Apt. 78 backing the venue. The board also received a raft of supportive letters, including ones from the Amistad Dual Language School, Bread and Yoga, the People’s Theater Project and the Northern Manhattan Arts Alliance, Diaz said.

“This application is unusual because we had so many concerns from police but also an unusually large outpouring of community support,” he told the full board.

However, not all members were in favor of the application.

“Everyone is up here talking about the arts,” said one board member. “Is the board voting on the arts or on a liquor license?”

Morales did not respond to a request for comment.

The community board's vote is advisory. The State Liquor Authority will make a final decision on the renewal application in the coming weeks.