The city liquor board today imposed a one-week suspension of the liquor license for the political club headed by City Councilman Dominic Mimi DiPietro. The suspension stemmed from a March 9 incident involving approximately 240 juveniles who participated in a drunken party at the club.
The board dismissed the most serious charge of allowing juveniles to consume alcoholic beverages on the premises. That charge was dropped because the club's liquor license was not used to sell or dispense liquor to the minors, according to Aaron L. Stansbury, the executive secretary of the board.
The suspension of the license resulted from the reveler's disorderly conduct during the party, which was held at the United Democratic Club of the 26th Ward located at 3723 Claremont Ave. in Highlandtown.
Stansbury said a one-day liquor license was not obtained by the person or persons who rented the hall for the party. The failure to obtain the one-day license is a violation of the city's liquor law.
The colorful, 85-year-old DiPietro did not attend this morning's board hearing because of a meeting with constituents over a neighborhood problem.
"Does this mean I can't have my meetings?" DiPietro asked when informed of the decision.
Looking at a calendar, DiPietro figured out that the suspension, which starts Friday, Sept. 28, would end on Friday Oct. 5 just in time for the club's regular monthly meeting the next day.
"Well, that doesn't hurt," DiPietro said. "We can still give 'em the beer. They [the club members] don't drink the beer like they used to at the meetings. We used to give 'em a half-keg, but now we got them new members and they want to drink Coke, so we only give them a quarter-keg."
The board ordered the club to come up with a better procedure to rent the club's hall and to have the Fire Department issue a crowd capacity sign.
The club also had been cited for not following proper fire and safety requirements.
DiPietro maintains that the party was held without his knowledge.
"It was a bunch of girls that did it [rented the hall]," said DiPietro. "They pulled the hood over our eyes. We didn't know there was gonna be a bunch of kids in there."
Michael Flannery, a club member and one of the liquor licensees along with DiPietro and John Trotts, told the board that the club is deciding whether to continue renting the hall or to turn the rental duties over to a professional caterer.
