Students may see an increase in live music venues downtown after Madison mayor Dave Cieslewicz revamps the committee in charge of alcohol-licensed businesses.
Cieslewicz announced his appointments last June to the city’s alcohol-granting body, replacing a powerful alder who dominated the committee since 1985 with policies unfriendly to drink specials and live music, according to some City Council members.
Council members also said replacing Ald. Tim Bruer, District 14, after nearly two decades on the Alcohol License Review Committee could result in more live music venues in Madison.
The main purpose of this committee is to review applications and make recommendations to the City Council for final action.
In response, Bruer said the committee would lose his intimate knowledge of alcohol-related issues and their history downtown.
He said an increase in bars downtown results in an increase in violence, sexual assault and domestic abuse and therefore a spike in police calls, a concern the ALRC needs to consider because the city has enough resources invested in alcohol-related issues.
According to Bruer, the mayor’s appointments will not drastically increase the number of music venues downtown because the City Council, not the ALRC, holds the final authority on liquor licenses and most members on the council share similar concerns about the increase in alcohol-related crime and will have a “watchful eye” on the ALRC’s recommendations.
City Council president Mike Verveer, District 4, said the new members are “a breath of fresh air” on the committee, which he said has been hypercritical of bar owners who want to have DJs, bands, or dancing.
“I think they are going to be an awesome improvement to alcohol policy in the city,” Verveer said.
At the Aug. 13 ALRC meeting, Verveer said both The Casbah and The Rainbow Room received recommendations for cabaret licenses “with very little trouble,” a signal that the appointments will indeed have a positive impact on the music scene downtown.
Cieslewicz appointed three new members to the seven-member committee, including former UW assistant dean and jazz musician Jan Wheaton and former alder Tom Powell, who recently received a doctorate in music composition.
Wheaton and Powell have already begun their terms on the ALRC, and Ald. Warren Onken, District 3, will fill the aldermanic spot Oct. 1, before the committee elects a new chair.
Bruer said he will refocus his efforts on redevelopment issues in his district. He was appointed to the Community Development Authority and Board of Estimates in April.
Powell said he hopes the increase of musicians on the committee will send a message to bar owners “that there is a much more friendly ALRC.”
He said he also disagrees with city policy that requires bar owners to obtain a license for dancing but not to host live music.
“We need to get away from this business of the city regulating dancing,” Powell said.
He said he would like the committee to reexamine cabaret licenses that were recently denied and look at current restrictions on certain liquor licenses that prohibit amplified music or allow DJs but not live music.
Cieslewicz reappointed District 6 alder Judy Olson to the ALRC, who said new members may bring a fresh perspective to the committee, which will result in changes in liquor license recommendations to the City Council.
Olson said the committee should review its operating procedures to take charge of discussions and give the chair less authority.
“Because Alder Bruer was the chair for so long, the committee was accustomed to a certain system of operating,” Olson said.
Powell called Bruer’s term a “one-person show” in which he dominated discussion and met with lawyers representing bars before committee meetings to decide the bars’ alcohol-serving fate.
