WASHINGTON HEIGHTS — A city councilman is calling on the State Liquor Authority to vote against renewing a liquor license for a controversial restaurant that was embroiled in a sex scandal involving police officers earlier this year.
City Councilman Ydanis Rodriguez came out against Parilla Steakhouse when the restaurant, on Broadway and West 164th Street, filed an application to renew its liquor license application earlier this month, claiming the owner refuses to work with the community he serves.
Rodriguez claims that his office has received more than 400 noise complaints over the past several years, with neighbors reporting loud music shaking the building until early morning and raucous parties spilling out of the establishment after midnight.
“I support small business in our community, but I think Parrilla does not have a good record of working with tenants of the building,” he told DNAinfo New York.
Community Board 12’s economic development committee recommended against the license renewal on May 1.
The full board will vote on the resolution during its general meeting on Tuesday, May 23. The SLA will then get a final say in the matter as it administers all liquor licenses.
According to SLA records, the establishment has received two fines since 2009, each involving the establishment purchasing liquor from a vendor who was not licensed to sell alcohol.
The Department of Buildings is also investigating whether a back room the restaurant owner constructed out of a ground floor apartment in the building is legal, according to Rodriguez.
DOB officials did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
In February, Rodriguez was joined by state Sen. Adriano Espaillat to call on the SLA to close the establishment after a waitress said she was sexually assaulted by her employer on Feb. 16 after he asked her to entertain a group of police officers from the 33rd Precinct who were drinking on the job.
The pols called for a full investigation into the allegations and called for the restaurant to be shuttered because of its history of noise complaints, potential building violations and a lack of willingness to work with the community.
"The situation has taken a troubling turn for the worse," Rodriguez said in February. "We are calling for this restaurant to be closed down, before it brings any more negative activity to our neighborhood."
