NORTHAMPTON — The Tellus & the Satellite Bar restaurant and nightclub faces a one-day liquor license suspension followed by six months of probation after the city’s License Commissioners found that it served an underage patron and operated above its license’s capacity on April 19.
Firefighters and police officers joined License Commission members and Satellite co-owners Amanda Riseling and Nhan Bui at a public hearing held virtually Monday morning.
Police officers outlined two separate responses to the 150 Main St. nightclub, located in the basement level of Thornes Marketplace, for overcrowding, occurring on April 5 and April 19. Commissioners disregarded the April 5 complaint since there was no formal count of the bar’s patrons.
“Before Northampton Police arrived … I came out of my office after completing paperwork for the dinner service and I looked at the room and I said ‘this is not acceptable, there are too many people here,'” Riseling said of the night of April 5.
However, the nightclub was penalized for the April 19 overcrowding incident, which involved an intoxicated 20-year-old who Northampton Police Lt. Brian Letzeisan said was unresponsive.
“When I arrived on scene [at 1:08 a.m.], the bar crowd was hanging around the outside area of the establishment of the public courtyard area. There, I observed officer [Simonne] Ouimette assisting Northampton Fire Rescue with a young, highly-intoxicated female on the ambulance stretcher,” Letzeisan said. “It was evident that the establishment had served her underage, therefore violating their liquor license. Additionally, the minor was overserved alcohol, as she was found inside the bar unable to hold her head up or open her eyes.”
Letzeisan went on to explain that two Satellite employees who had been counting patrons as they entered to club on April 19 reported two different occupancy numbers — one had counted 99 patrons and the other said the count was 88.
Deputy Fire Chief Shawn Denkiewicz had counted more than 100 clubgoers exiting the business, Letzisan added. The lieutenant noted that police had already warned the establishment on April 5 that its capacity was 74 patrons.
Peter Irvine, an attorney hired by the club, asked Riseling and Bui a series of questions about changes they’ve made to staff’s practice after the two incidents.
Riseling explained that half of her current nightclub security staff has undergone crowd management certification training. She added that she now requires all of the bar’s patrons to secure similar training, noting that since the April 19 meeting, the bar now has two or three employees with counting devices stationed at the bar’s exits and entrances.
The employee who worked the club door on the nights of both violations, Riseling said, is no longer allowed to serve as a bouncer for Satellite. She added that the bar has also seen instances of patrons sneaking their friends into the club through an emergency exit “increasing in severity.”
“People on the inside are propping that door open to allow people to get in without waiting in line,” she said. “We will shut down the music and basically shut down the night if that continues to happen. We’ve also put someone out there to deal with that.”
In April, Riseling said that Building Inspector Kevin Ross inspected the location to address the establishment’s capacity. She said that after clearing away restaurant furniture during the business’s nightclub hours, Ross agreed that the business’ capacity could be increased to 100 patrons.
“Now, for dinner service, the occupancy remains at 74 and for the nightclub the capacity’s 100,” Riesling said, announcing that the city certified the business’s increased capacity on April 24.
In response to Irvine’s questioning, Riseling also explained that she hired an engineer to inspect the business and find ways to increase capacity. She said the space, according to the engineer, could support a maximum of 220 people, should it install three additional bathroom fixtures.
Police Chief John Cartledge recommended that the nightclub be penalized with a two-day liquor license suspension for the April 5 and April 19 incidents. However, since a formal count was not conducted on April 5, Commission Chair Natasha Yakovlev argued that the club should only be held liable for the April 19 issue. Commissioner Amy Cahillane shared Yakovlev’s opinion.
“I would call April 19 an actual violation and April 5 an unfortunate evening,” Cahillane said. “Without a firm count, I would not want to put an actual violation on that date.”
Commission member Jennifer Ewers noted that the establishment is required to count its patrons, to which Cahillane responded that while the business failed to keep proper records, that offense does not carry the same severity as overcrowding.
The Board voted unanimously to find that Satellite did not violate the terms of its license on April 5, but did, in fact, overcrowd the bar on April 19.
Yakovlev, discussing penalties for the nightclub, suggested that the board move forward with the police chief’s recommendation, noting that while the bar has historically been steadfast in its response to complaints, owners received a stern letter warning them about overcrowding two weeks before April 19.
“For a second event to have occurred two weeks later — in this case a person was unconscious in the establishment — that is concerning and disappointing,” Yakovlev said.
Cahillane explained that the Police Department’s recommendation could have been made prior to the department’s knowledge of the steps the bar had taken to raise its capacity and ensure that patrons are properly counted. She added that the bar owners have always been proactive in addressing concerns, noting that the city’s Pride festival had come and gone without incident from the bar.
Ewers suggested that the club instead face a liquor license suspension of one day, followed by a six-month probationary period, in which the second day of suspension will go into effect should there be another overcrowding violation within the probationary period.
Commission members voted unanimously to approve Ewer’s suggested penalty for the club. The club will decide on a date for the license suspension to take place, though it must happen within 90 days.
