Quantcast

The DNAinfo archives brought to you by WNYC.
Read the press release here.

Owners of Bar 118 Meet with Alderman, City Officials to Resolve Complaints

By Howard Ludwig | December 10, 2015 5:45am
 Bar 118 opened in Morgan Park in April. Neighbors have voiced concerns to Ald. Matt O'Shea ever since, he said.
Bar 118 opened in Morgan Park in April. Neighbors have voiced concerns to Ald. Matt O'Shea ever since, he said.
View Full Caption
DNAinfo/Howard A. Ludwig

MORGAN PARK — Owners of Bar 118 in Morgan Park met with Ald. Matt O'Shea (19th) and other city officials Tuesday afternoon in the spirit of being a good neighbor.

The bar at 11848 S. Western Ave. opened in April, and O'Shea said he's been regularly contacted by neighbors with safety concerns and other complaints ever since.

"This was going to stop, or I was going to go after their license," O'Shea said.

The four owners of Bar 118 and their attorney met the concerned parties in City Hall. O'Shea led the group that included police as well as officials from the city's law department and the department of business affairs and consumer protection, the alderman said.

 The owners of Bar 118 in Morgan Park promised to work to be a better neighbor on Tuesday afternoon. They met with Ald. Matt O'Shea (19th) as well as other city officials in City Hall.
The owners of Bar 118 in Morgan Park promised to work to be a better neighbor on Tuesday afternoon. They met with Ald. Matt O'Shea (19th) as well as other city officials in City Hall.
View Full Caption
DNAinfo/Howard A. Ludwig

The alderman relayed the concerns of neighbors to the bar owners and asked city officials to put together an action plan. This plan will be presented to the business owners in roughly 10 days, and the owners are encouraged to follow through with the recommendations, O'Shea said.

"Complaints have typically been about loud music. And after the bar closes at 2 a.m. or 3 a.m., the party continues in the alley," said O'Shea, adding that he was also troubled by parties that advertise events beyond the limitations of Bar 118's liquor license.

Complaints against Bar 118 were first made public at a town hall meeting O'Shea hosted on Sept. 23 at the Chicago High School for Agricultural Sciences in Mount Greenwood.

Homeowners living nearby the tavern were at the meeting and said there had been an uptick in crime since the bar arrived on the scene. O'Shea and Chicago Police Cmdr. Mark Harmon of the Morgan Park District confirmed then that the bar had landed on their radar.

After hearing of the meeting, Javon Cherry, one of the owners of Bar 118, said he was willing to work with the surrounding community. The Blue Island resident attended the Downtown meeting on Tuesday and said it was a productive exchange.

He said the tavern will immediately install motion lights behind the tavern and perform a sweep of the surrounding area to discourage loitering after closing.

Cherry also said he plans to attend any and all community meetings going forward so he can address issues immediately. This includes meetings of the Beverly Woods Homeowners Association, which encompasses the area immediately surrounding the bar.

O'Shea said the silver lining of the Bar 118 situation could be that it sparks the neighborhood association back into action. The group had been largely defunct until complaints about the tavern arose, he said.

Regardless, both Cherry and O'Shea seemed confident that Tuesday's meeting was a step toward resolving the problems at Bar 118.

"I would say that the meeting went well," O'Shea said. "The bar owners said all the right things."

For more neighborhood news, listen to DNAinfo Radio here: