Orono’s Ushuaia denied permits by Town Council

ORONO – Town councilors on Monday unanimously rejected liquor and special amusement permits for Ushuaia, a local dance club and bar.

Their reasoning for denying the permits was not based on the number of incidents police have responded to at the facility in the last year, but the nature of those incidents and concern for the safety of patrons.

“This saddens me greatly to take an action that makes it difficult for [club owner Alex Gray] to do business,” Council Chairman Geoff Gordon said after Monday’s vote. “Alex didn’t provide a persuasive argument for what he’s going to do differently in the coming year. I do feel that in this past year, the severity of the events has escalated.”

Police responded to 47 incidents at the club in 2005, according to Orono Deputy Police Chief Gary Duquette. In March and May 2005, four people were stabbed in two separate incidents at the facility; one of those incidents – in which one person died in police custody -remains under investigation, Duquette said.

The club’s existing license expires Feb. 11. The council is planning to hold a special meeting at 4:30 p.m. Thursday at the town office to revisit the decision and separate the special amusement and liquor permits.

The special amusement permit can only be appealed to the town, not the state as with the liquor license. The two issues must therefore be put into separate motions.

“At this point, I’m not commenting on anything,” Gray said Tuesday. He anticipates appealing the council’s decision on the liquor license to the Maine Bureau of Alcoholic Beverages.

“There is a huge amount of support that has come out today from the student body [at the University of Maine] and some members of the administration,” Gray said. “We’ll do whatever we can to be able to stay open.”

The topics raised at Monday’s meeting echoed sentiments that were expressed last year when Gray’s license came up for renewal. At that time, councilors were concerned that the number of police calls, particularly noise complaints, had jumped from 23 incidents in 2003 to 43 the next year.

Gray agreed to work with city officials to mitigate the problems and has installed a comprehensive video surveillance system, metal detectors, and increased staff presence at the facility, but the changes don’t appear to have fixed the problems as far as councilors are concerned.

Incidents in the parking lot, including underage drinking, continue to concern councilors and police officials.

Gray’s offer to have one of his staff members patrol the lot using an ATV wasn’t enough to convince the council to grant the permit.

“Augusta’s going to have to give him the license,” Gordon said. “I’m not going to sign on the line for it.”