Ultra lounge and restaurant owners update city committee on plans to open

Back in January 2009 we wrote about Ivanhoe Pub & Eatery owner Doug Nicholson's plans to open an "ultra lounge" on Main Street in the former Racine News building.

It looks like it'll be a few more months before the "green" night club, tentatively named "Envi," opens. Nicholson appeared before the Public Safety and Licensing Committee Monday night to update committee members on the status of the project. The City Council granted Nicholson a liquor license for Envi about 15 months ago.

Nicholson told the committee it would be four or five months before he's able to open. He is, however, working on remodeling the interior and exterior of the building, which he owns.

The committee is interested in Nicholson's progress, and the progress of two other establishments with liquor licenses, because Racine is close to the state-set limit on Class B liquor licenses. It only has three available licenses, at the moment, and those license cost $10,000 a piece because they are "reserve" licenses that technically exceed the city's legal limit.

Nicholson's club, as well as the proposed "Grumpy's" on Lathrop Avenue and "Gerald's" on Washington Avenue, all hold liquor licenses but have yet to open. All three owners were called before the Public Safety and Licensing Committee Monday night under a new city ordinance that requires liquor license holders to update the committee on their progress if they don't open within nine months of receiving the license.

Grumpy's owner Karley Barcalow told the committee her plans were delayed because used kitchen equipment she planned on using didn't pass health department inspection. She told the committee she's now seeking additional loans to buy new equipment and to open, but is having a hard time convincing a bank to help her. That said, she has made progress on opening at 2011 Lathrop Ave. and hopes to move forward within four to five months. Barcalow received her license last summer and had planned to open Sept. 1.

Gerald Bester, owner of Gerald's on Washington Avenue, is hoping for a late-May opening, he told the committee. Bester has been appearing regularly before city committees in recent months to gain approvals for his restaurant, cafe and comedy club in the former "Bank" building in Uptown. He had always planned a spring 2010 opening. 

Alderman Aron Wisneski, chairman of the Public Safety and Licensing Committee, said city staff confirmed all three business owners are making progress on their establishments. Under city ordinance, each will have to provide a written update to the committee in three months, if they don't open.

New Uptown restaurant, Gerald's, eyes May opening

Gerald Bester at Thursday's Access Corridor Review Board meeting. 

Plans for a new restaurant in the former "Bank" building in Uptown are on track for an opening in the first or second of week of May, according to the owner.

Gerald Bester, owner of the soon-to-open "Gerald's" at 1501 Washington Ave., appeared before the Access Corridor Review Board on Thursday to get awnings and a facade grant approved for the building. Both easily passed the board.

Following the meeting, Bester said he's tentatively planning to open in early May. He said he's installed a full commercial kitchen and is now going through the permit approval process, hiring staff and getting the restaurant ready.

Here's our initial story about Bester's ambitious plans for the site.

Uptown restaurant may include a coffee shop; Massage business approved at Regency Mall

Plan Commission meeting, Sept. 9.

A new restaurant in Uptown may also have a coffee shop, the owner said Wednesday.

Gerald Bester, who plans to open "Gerald's" restaurant at 1501 Washington Ave. next spring, told the Plan Commission he's close to securing a deal with a Milwaukee's Stone Creek Coffee to open a cafe for the site.

The cafe would add morning hours to Bester's plan, with Gerald's opening daily at 7 a.m. The coffee shop would close daily at 7 p.m., while the restaurant stays open until 11 p.m. Monday through Wednesday, 2 a.m. Thursday through Saturday, and 10 p.m. on Sunday.

The Plan Commission approved the additional hours as part of Bester's conditional use permit for the site, which is the former home of "The Bank," and "The Vault." The permit now needs final approval from the City Council.

Body Oasis Massage

A body and foot massage business is moving into Regency Mall.

Hua Ying Sun is planning to open Body Oasis Massage in the former D.O.C. Optical store in the mall. The store will be Sun's second. He also runs a massage business at the mall in Fond du Lac.

Curt Pruitt, manager of Regency Mall, visited Sun's Fond du Lac shop. He described the business as an open and appropriate service. All massages are fully clothed in chairs or on a table. Cloth screens may be used to divide people using the service or to block the front window.

Sun estimated between 10 and 20 people use the service daily in Fond du Lac.

The Plan Commission approved a permit for Sun's business on Wednesday. It now needs City Council approval.

Taylor Home

The commission approved a residential facility for developmentally disabled adults in two buildings on the Taylor Home campus at 3131 Taylor Ave.

JML Healthcare Services LLC will run the program, which will accommodate up to 16 adults. Audrey Viau, chairwoman of the Village of Elmwood Park, said no one objected to the residential facility during a public hearing Tuesday night.

"We're looking forward to having them," Viau said.

J. Michael Grasso, of JML Healthcare, said eight residents will attend a shelter workshop - like Careers Industries - during the day, and eight are more severely disabled and will require more intensive care. All 16 will be supervised 24 hours a day, Grasso said.

The commission approved JML Healthcare's permit, which now moves to the full council for approval.

Bester forcefully denies Uptown restaurant will be a hip hop club

Gerald Bester's meandering path through city government to open his new restaurant in Uptown continued Wednesday with an appearance before the Plan Commission.

Bester needs a conditional-use permit to open his restaurant, "Gerald's," at 1501 Washington Ave. He made a brief appearance before the commission Wednesday and discussed his plans.

Bester, who has already secured a liquor license, intends to open an upscale restaurant with comedy acts on the weekend (Bester used to run a comedy club in Milwaukee and has ties to national comedians). The restaurant will have smokehouse theme that serves specialty meats, turkey, ribs, chicken and fish, along with sandwiches, appetizers and tacos.

He also said he'll work with local corporations to build relationships and hopefully attract people for lunches and dinners.

Bester forcefully denied the restaurant would turn into a hip hop club.

"I'll be a good neighbor in the this city and in the Uptown community," he said. "I'm well-versed about the previous problems in the area. I've done everything I know how to to get the message out that this won’t be that type of an establishment."

"I'm committed to making this part of the solution, not a problem for the city of Racine," he added.

During a public hearing on the conditional-use permit, Richard Kemper said the Uptown business associations supported Bester as long as he installed a full kitchen in the building. Kemper added he had concerns about Gerald's staying open late on the weekends.

"What we don’t need in our neighborhood is a lot of influx late at night," he said.

Lauren Konopka, of the High Riders Motorcycle Club, said the club supported Bester's application for a conditional-use permit.

"This man deserves his chance," she said.

Alderman Michael Shields agreed. He said Bester has made it clear he intends to open a restaurant and the city should give him the opportunity to enact those plans. He argued past incidents in the building are irrelevant to Bester, who had nothing to do with what happened five years ago.

That said, Shields said he also intended to hold Bester accountable to his plans.

"If Mr. Bester fails, believe me, I’ll be one of the first to say he needs to go," Shields said.

Following the public hearing, Plan Commission member Brent Oglesby said he supported Bester's plans. He said he was particularly interested in a restaurant staying open late because most sit-down places in Racine close relatively early.

Commission member Eric Marcus reminded the commission that it was simply voting on whether the restaurant was a good use of the land, not whether the restaurant itself was a good idea. It's a key distinction that factors out reviewing Bester's business plan.

"We’re not (determining) if this is a good restaurant," Marcus said. "(We're determining) if it is a good use of the land."

Bester was also asked about his plans for an outdoor patio on the second story of the building. He said it likely would be used as a smoking area once the state goes smoke free next year. It could also allow him to sell Canadian cigars.

The commission voted to defer action on the conditional-use permit until the Access Corridor Development Review Committee reviews the proposal at its meeting on Aug. 22.

Aldermen exchange barbs over committee's review of liquor licenses

Alderman Mike Shields accused the City Council's Public Safety and Licensing Committee Monday night of treating minority-owned bars and restaurants unfairly.

"The way they drill people of color is a problem with me," Shields said in the hallway during the committee meeting.

Shields' comments came after the committee asked Gerald Bester, an African-American businessman from Milwaukee, a series of tough questions about his plans to open a new restaurant in Uptown.

Alderman Aron Wisneski, chairman of the committee, forcefully rejected Shields' contention.

"As usual, he (Shields) didn't do his homework to make an informed decision," Wisneski said.

Wisneski said the committee asks every business that's applying for a liquor license a series of questions designed to probe the applicant's ability to run a safe business.

He acknowledged the committee is tougher than its predecessors, but said it's tougher because the council allowed people to sell alcohol without doing enough research into their backgrounds. The result: Unsafe and unruly bars that brought down the quality of life in their neighborhoods.

"Our committee is doing its job," Wisneski said. "We don't hand out licenses like candy. Liquor licenses are a serious job for our committee."

Every meeting the committee calls bars and restaurants before it to review recent police incidents in or near the establishment. License holders are typically asked to explain what happened and are given a series of actions meant to control crowds and cut down on violent incidents.

For example, the committee asks bars to install a certain type of video camera to help monitor the premises. Another common request is an electronic ID checker that forces the bars and liquor stores to scan IDs of people buying alcohol.

The committee will also ask bars to close early if police incidents are occurring after 1 a.m.

Occasionally, bars choose not to comply and turn in their liquor license. Cash Money, a former bar on S. Memorial Drive, shut down after a murder and a shooting occurred nearby.

Other times, businesses are denied. A proposed Sixth Street convenience store failed to win a liquor license because neighboring businesses were opposed.

Mostly, though, bar owners are called in, scolded for police incidents and ordered to work with the City Attorney's office to make improvements. The underlying threat is the city will pull a business's liquor license if it doesn't comply.

"We have to do a better job of making sure they're good neighbors, not bad neighbors," Wisneski said about liquor license holders. "Alcohol makes people do stupid things. Good tavern owners know how to do things responsibly. They know how to be good neighbors."

As for business owners of color, Wisneski said the committee is tough to all applicants and license holders. He pointed to a tough series of questions Karley Barcalow, who is white, went through about her new restaurant on Lathrop Ave. They were similar to the questions Bester and another applicant, who is Hispanic, had to answer Monday night. (Barcalow, who received committee approval, said after the meeting she was a little flustered by the committee's questions.)

To ensure fair treatment, Wisneski said the committee works off a list of standard questions it asks all applicants, Wisneski said.

He added that while the committee is tough, it grants most liquor license applications.

"It is very rare we deny a license," Wisneski said. "A person would have had to have committed a felony. But we take this seriously. We don't just rubber stamp applications. We have high expectations for them (license holders)."

Restaurant planned at former nightclub 'The Bank' in Uptown

Gerald Bester plans to open a new restaurant in Uptown. "Gerald's" will be located at
1501 Washington Ave., the former home of "The Bank" nightclub.

The former nightclub "The Bank" in Racine's Uptown is ready for its next act.

Gerald Bester, of Milwaukee, is preparing to open a restaurant in the space that was once home to the controversial nightclub. Bester is planning to buy the building at 1501 Washington Ave. and turn it into "Gerald's," a restaurant he described as "upscale that's a step below elegant dining and two or three steps above fast food." The restaurant has a smokehouse theme and will serve a variety of specialty items, Bester said.

His plans took an important step forward Monday night. The City Council's Public Safety and Licensing Committee agreed to give Bester an alcohol license as soon as he adds a kitchen capable of serving 150 people in the building.

The committee grilled Bester on his plans, but a strong business plan and an endorsement from the Uptown Business Association won over the aldermen. They unanimously backed Bester's restaurant.

Bester said he plans to build the kitchen toward the end of October. Contractors and plans are lined up for the job, which will actually complete a kitchen started when a restaurant/bar called the "The Vault" was in business about five years ago.

Bester, of Milwaukee, hopes to open "Gerald's" in spring 2010. He has experience running businesses. He now owns a trucking company, which he plans to sell to open the restaurant, and is the former owner of "The Comedy Spot," a comedy club in Milwaukee.

He'll also have some help. Karl Kopp, the owner of Kopp's Frozen Custards in the Milwaukee area, will serve as a mentor. "He's agreed to help in every aspect of the business," Bester said.

The distinctive building at 1501 Washington Ave. (right) is a former bank that was converted into a nightclub in 2000. The interior is beautifully designed with a second-story balcony overlooking the floor.

The building has sat vacant for the last five years after "The Vault," a bar/restaurant that replaced "The Bank" nightclub shut down. "The Bank" was open from 2000 to 2003.

Current owner Linnea Anthony said several people looked at the building, but none were a good fit. "It's been waiting for Gerald," she said.

Richard Kemper, a dentist who lives a few buildings down from the proposed restaurant, spoke in favor of Bester receiving a liquor license as long as he puts in a full kitchen and treats the space more as a restaurant than a bar or nightclub. Kemper, speaking on behalf of the Uptown Business Association, said he was "cautiously optimistic" about Bester's proposal.

"We look forward to 2010," he said.

While the committee backed Bester, they made it near impossible for him to open just a bar at 1501 Washington Ave. Along with a finished kitchen, the committee required Bester to give them a menu, set hours of operation and come back to the committee if he makes any significant changes to his restaurant business plan at any time.

Bester agreed to the changes and the committee gave him the go ahead for a liquor license. The full City Council will vote on the license next week.