UPTOWN — A trio of liquor license applications were shot down by the local community board amid a politician's push to restrict new establishments from selling alcohol in Inwood.
Community Board 12 recommended not approving licenses for Maja’s Tapas at 229 Dyckman St., Anchor Heights at 575 W. 207th St. and a new venture at 151 Nagle Ave., citing community concerns with the nightlife oversaturation tied to state Sen. Adriano Espaillat’s proposed legislation to place a moratorium on any new liquor licenses in a section of Inwood.
“I think it is a combination,” CB12 chairman Shah Ally told DNAinfo New York Tuesday about the board's decision not to support the licenses, adding that the board continues to review all applicants on an individual basis but has taken Espaillat's exhortations into consideration.
The moratorium, introduced by the senator late last year, requires that all new liquor license applications in a swath of Inwood be rejected for a full year to give the community board an opportunity to review current establishments and the committee's approval process.
The board's commitment to the proposal — done under the watchful eye of Espaillat, who has attended multiple community board meetings to promote the legislation — has has come with mixed results.
In the case of Maja's Tapas, the most contested application at Tuesday's meeting, CB12's liquor license committee had approved the request earlier in the month.
The owners of the eatery, which opened in 2014, voluntarily surrendered their liquor license in February in order to "start from scratch," Maja's rep Arelia Taveras explained at the meeting, adding that the owners were formerly in business with another person who was arrested for embezzlement.
“The new owners have been in the community for over 30 years,” Taveras pleaded with the board. “They’ve been a good neighbor.”
Taveras also claimed the restaurant has never had problems with the police or State Liquor Authority. However, in 2014, Maja’s Tapas was required to shut down after getting cited for serving to alcohol minors, something residents were quick to point out.
“Maja’s did have sales to minors and other violations,” said Inwood resident Katherine O’Sullivan, a representative for the nonprofit Moving Forward Unidos.
Cheryl Miller, another member of the nonprofit, added that Maja's has been "relentlessly loud since it opened."
Another Inwood resident, Leah Holzel, also urged the board to vote against the application.
"There is a crisis of liquor licenses," Holzel said, "specifically on Dyckman St. between Broadway and Payson Avenue."
Ultimately, the board voted against Maja's application with 26 against, 10 in support and 4 abstentions. Additionally, the requests for Anchor Heights and the business at 151 Nagle Ave. were also shot down, with very little discussion between the board and reps for the ventures. Both had previously been rejected at the committee level.
“We need to stand together as a community,” Espaillat said at the meeting, reiterating his calls from previous board gatherings.
“I ask you vote against the recommendation on the agenda of any of the establishments that falls within the [moratorium] area," which runs from Hillside Avenue to the northern tip of Manhattan. "We need to stand together and call a timeout. Let’s relax a little bit."
Espaillat added that the proposed legislation has gotten noticed in Albany, though it hasn't moved any closer to becoming law.
