And Now Last Call at 1 a.m.?

By Tom Deignan

ARE New York City officials planning to throw up yet another hurdle for bar owners and pub crawlers in New York City?

Rumors abound that The New York City Department of Consumer Affairs is devising a plan which could end up requiring a significant number of bars and clubs to close at 1 a.m.

In most cities that wouldn’t mean all that much. But in New York – the famed “city that never sleeps” – night owls are proud that their dance halls and watering holes are typically open until 4 a.m., if not later.

Needless to say, many Irish immigrants are surprised when they first hear about New York’s late hours. Up until recently bars in Ireland were shuttered by midnight. Even now, there is talk of scaling back the modestly later bar hours in Ireland.

Obviously one could have lots of fun cracking wise about stereotypical Irish folks just off the boat in New York, dying to get themselves boozed up until all hours of the morning.

But the fact of the matter is late night bar hopping in New York City is big business for bar owners, not to mention bartenders, wait staff and more.

Closing a significant number of bars at 1 a.m. could mean another big hit for Irish bar owners and workers.

This latest controversy got underway with a report in The New York Post last week. According to the tabloid, City Consumer Affairs Commissioner Gretchen Dykstra was supporting a plan that would require what the paper called “a special two-year license” for any club or bar “with a capacity of 75 or more where the music would be 90 decibels or higher.”

Normal conversation is about 60 decibels. A typical day’s city traffic in about 80 decibels, while a motorcycle or a subway car could reach 90 decibels.

This effort to crack down on noise pollution is the latest salvo in an ongoing war between bars and neighborhood residents who argue their quality of life is hurt when patrons or clubs crank up the noise.

One wrinkle, here, however, is the argument that the smoking ban itself has led to more noise, at least outside bars, where people gather to smoke.

That, too, is something the Consumer Affairs Department appears to be targeting. Pubs or clubs reportedly could be slapped with violations for failing to sweep their sidewalk and 18 inches of adjacent street by 6 a.m. the next morning.

Let’s face it, all those cigarette butts on the street can make quite a mess.

All in all, under these reported new Consumer Affairs proposals, a business could be padlocked for up to 10 days after three noise or other license violations.

You might be tempted to say that your local is quiet enough, and is not exactly blaring dance music at 2:30 a.m. But observers seem to think these latest proposals could ultimately reach far and wide.

“The best-run bar in the entire universe could not stay open under the conditions in this proposal,” David Rabin, president of the New York Nightlife Association was quoted as saying.

“This bill will end up closing New York at 1 a.m.,” Rabin added. “It’s no longer going to be the city that never sleeps. We’re united on this - everyone from the little bars to the biggest nightclubs.”

Dykstra declined to comment on the proposals to the Post. A spokeswoman said: “We have a great nightlife in the city and have no intention of harming it.” 

This is just the latest battle in what have become New York City’s ongoing pub wars. First, of course, there was the smoking ban.

Then in recent weeks, some New York State counties began a program which allows business owners to prove they have been seriously hurt by the smoking ban. If they make a good case, the business can actually be exempt from the ban. Some counties on Long Island and just north of New York City are allowing exemptions. New York City is not. Not yet anyway.

Perhaps Irish bar owners and workers in New York would quietly welcome some kind of 1 a.m. closing time. A lot of trouble gets started around this time. But lots of business gets done as well.

In short, it’s yet another item publicans have to keep their eye on in the coming months.

Contact Sidewalks at  tdeignan@irishvoice.com.