Conditions requiring the Majestic Theatre, 115 King St., to close early and restrict seating will stay until its liquor license is reviewed in May, the Alcohol License Review Committee decided Wednesday.
The theater's owners, Scott Leslie and Matthew Gerding, said meeting safety expectations set when the license was granted last year should allow for more freedom now.
We've been open almost seven months and we've had zero problems,"" Leslie said after Wednesday's ALRC meeting.
Currently, the Majestic must close at 1:30 a.m. on weeknights and 2 a.m. on weekends - a half hour earlier than bars statewide. During non-ticketed events, like salsa nights, occupancy is capped at 350 and restricted to the main level.
The owners said these restrictions have hampered non-ticketed events because patrons must stop drinking early and have less room because they cannot utilize the balcony.
Some ALRC members, however, said the restrictions are necessary. Capitol Neighborhoods Inc. representative Richard Brown said granting the Majestic a regular bar time would conflict with the Alcohol Density Plan, passed in September 2007 to limit drinking establishments downtown.
""Agreeing to have several hundred additional patrons spill out on King Street at bar time along with patrons at other bars is asking for trouble,"" Brown said.
ALRC member Ald. Michael Schumacher, District 18, said he would not revise the conditions because they went hand-in-hand with granting a license in 2007.
The restrictions were in the name of safety after the former Club Majestic, under different ownership, brought in raucous hip-hop crowds that caused violence on King Street between 2004 and 2006.
Leslie and Gerding renovated the venue and in
September 2007 opened the new Majestic Theatre, a home to indie rock that has hosted 60 national headliners. Ald. Mike Verveer, District 4, an ALRC committee member, praised the theater for ""exceeding everyone's expectations.""
The ALRC suggested Leslie and Gerding continue discussions with Madison police and CNI from now until May, when the committee will review licenses and may reconsider the conditions.
The committee also announced Wednesday a hearing date of May 7 for Quinton's Bar & Deli, 319 W. Gorham St., which has faced scrutiny for an audit showing 50.82 percent of its revenue as alcohol. Under its license as a restaurant the establishment cannot exceed 50 percent in alcohol sales.
Verveer said at the hearing the ALRC will act as a jury and decide penalties for Quinton's, which could range from no action to revocation of its liquor license.
