NORTHAMPTON — The Tellus & Satellite Bar has built a reputation as one of the city’s premier late-night venues. But its weekend festivities have brought it into the orbit of the Northampton License Commission, who held a hearing on Wednesday to address noise complaints brought against the bar.
Residents of Hampton Court Apartments, which is located near the other side of the Armory Street parking where the bar resides, have taken issue with the bar’s activities on Friday and Saturday. While most establishments have closed up shop by 9 p.m., Tellus is open until 2 a.m.
Ward 4 City Councilor Jeremy Dubs, who also resides at Hampton Court, appeared during the commission meeting to speak on behalf of several of his neighbors who had brought forth complaints. Dubs said he was a regular at Tellus, but that he was aware of complaints from residents since he was first elected to the council in 2023.
“I’m not here to get anybody in trouble,” Dubs said. “I’m just here to be a voice for my constituents, because I feel like I wouldn’t be doing my job if I didn’t speak up for the multiple people that have come to me.”
Dubs read off statements from several residents voicing concern about the activity of the bar’s patrons, including claims of vomiting, drug use and loud noise in the area well into the early hours of the day. Dubs also said residents had been wary of bringing a petition against the bar, out of concern of being seen as attacking a local business.
One resident, Maurine Sutter, has been in communication with the city regarding noise concerns at the location since 2021. Sutter was not present at the Wednesday meeting, but Meg Robbins, an at-large city council candidate, appeared at the meeting and spoke on Sutter’s behalf and read her letters of complaint.
“I have never had to endure such blatant disregard for my right to peace and quiet enjoyment of my home,” Sutter wrote. “I would suggest that the needs of all those who reside here, as well as those that conduct business, be taken into consideration.”
According to Tellus’s website, the bar and restaurant serve as a nightclub between 10 p.m. to 2 a.m. on Fridays and Saturdays. The bar, which opened in 2022, plays a variety of music genres and holds a queer and drag-themed event once a month, according to the bar’s Instagram page.
According to Section 183A of the Massachusetts General Law, a licensing authority has the ability to modify, suspend or revoke an entertainment license if the license “has adversely affected the public health, safety or order” by a high level of noise in a given area.
Nhan Bui, a co-owner of Tellus, told the commission that the bar was properly soundproofed, and that even with bass sound waves the music alone would not be loud enough to travel to Hampton Court.
“If I ran it right now, you would not be able to hear it outside the door,” Bui said.
Bui’s fellow co-owner Amanda Riseling told the commission that the bar could have a line of people waiting outside, ranging from around 20 people on a normal weekend night to closer to 100 people for events held around the holidays.
“There’s lights right outside the door that I can manage from my iPhone to change the color when we’re at capacity. They’ll generally be green until we’re full, and then I turn it red,” Riseling said. “There are nights where it never goes back to green, so then there may be people waiting outside.”
Northampton Police Lt. Brian Letzeisen, who serves as commander of the overnight shift at the department, told the commission that there were 289 total calls to Tellus over a two-year period. However, he said many could be accounted for the fact that Tellus was one of the only late-night venues open, and few of the calls dealt with noise complaints.
“For the most part, they’re in compliance,” Letzeisen said of Tellus. “I think they do a pretty good job for what they’re tasked with.”
Garrick Perry, an at-large city councilor who formerly represented Ward 4, also defended Tellus during the hearing.
“Amanda and Nhan are doing a great job,” Perry said. “If you ever try to run a restaurant, and try to do a late night thing, you can only imagine how difficult it is and how you can only control what is within your boundaries.”
Perry also expressed hope that more late-night venues would open up in the city, but acknowledged it would pose additional challenges to upholding noise ordinances.
“Unfortunately, it is part of moving into a downtown of the city,” Perry said. “That’s not to say that people shouldn’t have their space and their mental health, but it is a reality of life.”
Ultimately, the License Commission ultimately did not take any punitive action against Tellus. Natasha Yakovlev, chair of the commission, noted that although the business was “very important for the nightlife,” she would like to discuss ways to mitigate sound issues, such as boxing in the entryway to the building and further sound studies.
“What are some of the ways we can mitigate that with the physical space?” Yakovlev said. “I would like to have a conversation with whoever needs to be involved in it.”
Riseling said Tellus was “all ears” for suggestions.
“If somebody has suggestions of what we could have, we’d be happy to do it,” Riseling said. “As far as putting something outside the door, we have no objections to it. It would probably function for our business in multiple ways.”