The plan for a new, multi-use establishment that would include a restaurant and banquet hall in University Square has been delayed after going before the Alcohol License Review Committee.
Scott Acker, owner of Middleton’s Quaker Steak and Lube, brought the proposed Hall of Fame Grill before the ALRC July 15. After nearly four hours of debate, Acker asked for a referral to a future meeting.
“The conversation in the meeting became circular and instead of having [the proposal] killed, I referred it,” Acker said.
Some members of the ALRC expressed concern over the large capacity of the Hall of Fame Grill, which would potentially host 900 people.
“When we are talking about 900, 1,000 or 1,100 capacities, these are high numbers,” said ALRC member and Ald. Michael Schumacher, District 18. “I need to be convinced the main motivation is a restaurant. If it comes to be 11:00 p.m. or 12:00 a.m. and it turns into a bar, it violates the Alcohol Density Plan.”
Acker said his goal is not to open up a 900-person bar in an already dense neighborhood of bars.
“Our focus is not a bar. We don’t even have a lot of vertical drinking room. It’s not a stand-up bar, like the rest of the neighborhood,” Acker said, adding there are only 36 bar stools for the Hall of Fame Grill’s 24,000 square foot area.
According to Acker, the Hall of Fame Grill would boast three separate venues: a casual restaurant would occupy the first floor, a slightly more upscale dining on the second floor, and a banquet hall on the third floor.
Nevertheless, Acker decided to “go back to the drawing board” and rethink his plan for the space in hopes of alleviating some of the concerns expressed by the ALRC and community.
“I want to bring a rock-solid plan,” Acker said. “The [previous] plan I brought didn’t sit well with people.”
Acker said the process for opening up a new establishment has to be organic and garner the support of the community. He also said reducing the capacity may be part of the revised plan for the space.
Ald. Bryon Eagon, District 8, who represents the district in which the new establishment would be located, said he thinks the project is an “exciting opportunity.”
“This project is the exact type of project we should be encouraging in the campus and downtown community,” Eagon said.
Eagon said he does not see the Hall of Fame Grill as a large bar, but rather a true mixed-use establishment. He added the patrons of the place would not all be “rowdy college students,” and it would offer an opportunity for people of all ages to have a comfortable place to frequent downtown.
The capacity is an issue Eagon said he would like to see addressed.
“Hopefully when the application comes back, there will be some conditions defining what spaces will have what capacities at what time,” Eagon said.
The proposal was slated for another review at the next ALRC meeting Aug. 19, but that meeting was cancelled. The next ALRC meeting is scheduled for Sept 8.
