Judges back city on bars

For now, earlier closing time stands

Attempts by several bar owners to temporarily halt Revere's decision to roll back closing times to 1 a.m. for all liquor-serving establishments were denied by state and federal court judges.

Owners of the Shipwreck Lounge and Esquire Lounge had sought a preliminary injunction from state Superior Court, while owners of The Cove and The Squire asked for a temporary restraining order from US District Court to keep the rollback from taking effect on July 1.

While both requests were denied, the cases against the city are still pending. The denials are in line with recent court rulings against blocking a similar rollback in Lynn, which has been in effect since Jan. 2.

It was Lynn's decision to roll back hours that prompted Revere's License Commission to follow suit, over concerns that Revere would become a last-call destination, possibly increasing the number of alcohol-related emergency and public safety calls.

City officials acknowledged that the rollback would have a negative economic impact on some establishments, but a positive one for public safety.

The closest options now for patrons seeking to drink until 2 a.m. are Saugus and Boston.

James Cipoletta, co-counsel for The Cove and The Squire, expects the matter to go to trial. Both parties have to return to court July 23 to address the arguments.

"My expectation is that this case is going to be determined quicker in federal court than in state court," Cipoletta said Wednesday, hours after US District Judge Nancy Gertner denied the temporary restraining order.

"We raised different issues than the clubs in Lynn and a couple of clubs in Revere. We argued that they were constitutional issues."

Cipoletta argued that the License Commission's decision was arbitrary and capricious and that it violated the bar owners' constitutional right to due process.

The owners were not notified that the amendment to their liquor licenses would also subject their entertainment and common victualler licenses to a rollback, Cipoletta said.

At the very least, he said, these establishments are entitled to serve food until 2 a.m., even if they're not serving alcohol.

"The Squire is the only place in Revere licensed for adult entertainment," Cipoletta said.

"The Cove has a victualler license and an innkeeper's license. Mass. law says that the owner of a common victualler's license shall have access to food for 24 hours."

City solicitor Paul Capizzi said the commission's decision was lawful. In the city's argument against the temporary restraining order, Capizzi and assistant city solicitor Daniel Doherty stated that according to the city's regulations, the terms and conditions of an alcohol license supersede those of entertainment and common victualler licenses, making consideration of that argument "entirely pointless and moot."

"I think they saw the legal writing on the wall and decided to go to federal court," Capizzi said. "They're saying, 'OK, fine, no liquor, but we can still be open until two and have dances and hot dogs.' They argued they can stay open until two a.m. It's a barroom, for crying out loud, not a Denny's."

Sheri F. Murray, one of the attorneys representing the owners of the Shipwreck Lounge and Esquire Lounge, said they are also moving forward with a lawsuit. Suffolk Superior Court Judge Linda Giles denied their request for a preliminary injunction on June 20, stating that "the plaintiffs have failed to demonstrate a likelihood of prevailing on the merits."

Mayor Thomas G. Ambrosino said that the back-to-back denials to block the rollback so far bode well for the city. He said he is empathetic toward the bar owners' economic concerns, but added that the city "had a good reason to do it."

Gustavo Duran, owner of Plaza Garibaldi on Revere Beach Parkway, said he was pondering suing the city, but that his lawyer told him, "Don't waste your time or money because it's not going to go anywhere."

Duran, who argued against the rollback at a commission hearing earlier this year, called himself "fortunate" because he hasn't seen an economic fallout in the short time the rollback's been in effect.

"I was very worried and nervous about it, so I started an announcement a month before it happened, and [the customers] are now coming in earlier," Duran said. "So it worked out for me."

Isaias Correa, owner of Antonia's At The Beach on Revere Beach Boulevard, said the rollback so far hasn't affected his numbers, because of his establishment's restaurant component. But such is not the case for local bars.

"I have more people, friends of mine, that are in a different type of business and they're getting killed," Correa said. "The Squire, sports bars, another one that's getting killed is The Cove."

However, he doesn't think the rollback will put anyone out of business.

"People are going to get used to it," Correa said. "People from here are not going to travel to Boston, because they're not going to want the aggravation of having to find parking or pay for parking. To Saugus, they probably will [go]."

"Last time I checked, there were several establishments across the Commonwealth that close at 1 and are very successful," said License Commission chairman Michael Pepe.

"What I hope it brings is safer and quieter streets," he said. "It's probably a long time coming, something that the city should've done a long time ago."

Katheleen Conti can be reached at kconti@globe.com.