The Alcohol License Review Committee gave permission to the Blue Velvet Lounge, 430 W. Gilman St., to add a second level and to the soon to be renamed Bucky's Char Haus, 35 University Sq., to begin serving alcohol Wednesday.
After six months of delays, the Blue Velvet Lounge received its approval to add a second level to the bar. The expanded bar will have a capacity of 150 people as opposed to the 90 person capacity that it now holds, but owner Larry Schmock told the committee he would not target student business.
\The upstairs will be similar to the downstairs. There will be more couches, coffee tables and more artwork,"" Schmock said. ""We've kept it upscale and the prices are probably the highest on the street.""
Bucky's Char Haus will now also be able to sell beer and wine after City Council approval. According to UW-Madison administrator Cindy Van Metre, the restaurant will soon be called University Char Haus after its dispute with the university over the copyright of the UW-Madison mascot, Bucky.
""We want beer and wine to keep the eaters here who want beer and wine with their food. We are not a tavern. We have no intention of being a tavern,"" said David Dewey, a co-owner of the restaurant.
""I've owned a restaurant-bar in Illinois for seven years. ... I've seen the other side and I don't want the other side. I don't want to baby-sit.""
Even so, Ald. Tim Bruer, District 14, expressed some concerns because of the restaurant's proximity to State Street and the UW-Madison campus.
""It behooves all of us to closely scrutinize all proposals] that come before us,"" Bruer said. He cited Madison's reputation for its ""concentration of alcohol, hormones and good times.""
Co-owner Jim Hinz said he was unaware of any reputation Madison holds for drinking.
""I sent my daughter here to medical school, and she graduated two years ago,"" Hinz said. ""I didn't realize she was having that kind of fun.""
At the meeting, Kathleen Ann McCarney, who has proposed locating a night club named Vintage in the state Risser Justice Center at 17 W. Main St., met disappointment when a decision on her liquor license was deferred a month.
At the meeting, Bruer said there is a ""problem associated with alcohol and state properties,"" but McCarney said she was not aware that the state had a problem with her locating in the building.
""She was totally shocked. It was the first she heard that the state of Wisconsin had a problem with her having [Vintage] there, "" said Ald. Mike Verveer, District 4, who said he spoke with McCarney shortly after the meeting. "" It would be a fine establishment. I am disappointed that her liquor license will be delayed a month.\
