Music Room entertainment, liquor licenses suspended for violations – Cape Cod Times
YARMOUTH — The Board of Selectmen voted to suspend the The Music Room’s entertainment and liquor licenses for two days at their meeting Tuesday night.
The vote came after 2½ hours of testimony at a show-cause hearing on alleged violations of the liquor and entertainment licenses at the Route 28 music venue, which is owned by Brian Serpone.
The board voted unanimously — and in agreement with Serpone — to suspend The Music Room’s entertainment license. Serpone chose Dec. 22 and 23 as days to serve the suspension.
In a subsequent vote, the board was unanimous in its decision to suspend The Music Room’s liquor license for two days, but to hold the suspension in abeyance for a year.
Previous reporting:The Music Room, Brian Serpone, wait for state ABCC verdict on liquor license
Even though it was a violation of an administrative issue, Philip Magnuson reminded the board that the violation reflected on public safety. Magnuson, a retired Yarmouth police officer and non-practicing lawyer, is an assistant alcohol liaison for the Yarmouth Police Department. He recommended a short suspension to be held in abeyance for a year.
If there are any violations in that time, The Music Room must serve the suspension plus face whatever the new violation is, Selectman Michael Stone, who is licensing chairman, said.
“If you hold it in abeyance, that’s an incentive to comply going forward,” Stone said. “If he doesn’t comply, we’re going to say when the two days are, which could be in the summer.”
Selectman Peter Smith said it would be like holding the Sword of Damocles over Serpone’s head.
Magnuson agreed. “There’s more deterrent incentive by holding it in abeyance,” he said.
The Music Room opened in May. An entertainment license allowed music Tuesdays through Sundays, and an all-liquor license allowed alcoholic beverages to be sold seven days a week. But five neighbors complained that loud music was heard after 11 p.m. on five dates in October and November.
Police descriptions of the noise complaints ranged from “slight” to “obviously and excessively loud” in their written reports.
Serpone said he and his staff were under the impression that 11 p.m. was the time to stop live music only. The entertainment license stipulates that entertainment of amplified music, live bands, recorded music and theatrical exhibitions end at 11 p.m. On the bottom left of the license, it also included a list of conditions, one of which read: Live entertainment to end at 11 p.m.
A technical glitch?:Yarmouth selectmen to discuss Music Room liquor license expiration
Serpone said he understood this to mean just live music. He called it a gray area.
Stone said “You don’t want to get into calling it a gray area.”
Serpone’s lawyer, William Kelley, argued that some of the police reports had been modified after they were written and approved by a supervisor. “Is it fair to say it’s possible that it was completely altered,” Kelley asked officer Erica Wenberg, whose report showed that it had been modified.
“When we submit a report to the supervisor, sometimes there could be grammatical (errors) or things we need to add,” Wenberg said. “Sir, it’s the same report, possibly with spelling corrections.”
During the course of those police visits to The Music Room, Magnuson summarized a number of administrative violations that officers had found.
“As to TIPS training, they appear to in compliance, after the fact,” he said. “They are not in compliance with employee record-keeping requirements. Mr. Serpone has made a start. He doesn’t have a model policy that’s approved by the board. He doesn’t have a sign off sheet on the rules and regulations. And he doesn’t have a list of employees with their date of hire and age.”
TIPS stands for Training in Intervention Procedures, a program designed to prevent intoxication, underage drinking and drunk driving. Some staff claimed to be certified but couldn’t show their TIPS certificates.
In a line of questioning that Stone called bizarre before putting an end to it, Kelley asked Wenberg if the book containing the compliance documents was the property of The Music Room.
“I suppose it is the property, but it’s subject to inspection,” Stone said. “Where are you going with this?”
“It’s a crime to take and carry away the personal property of another person, isn’t it?” Kelley asked Wenberg, adding that Wenberg has full jurisdiction to investigate such events.
“Did you report it stolen?” Wenberg asked.
Stone interrupted at that point. “I’m not going to allow this question,” he said. “It’s bizarre to say the least. Let’s get back to the point.”
Kelley reiterated that The Music Room staff had been compliant, courteous, and helpful during every time police were called to the venue. He said Serpone took efforts to confine the noise to the building, and that he had been under stress.
“He wants to make Yarmouth the entertainment center of Cape Cod,” Kelley said. “He fought for this advancement and stuck with it.”
Kelley asked the board to give Serpone a reasonable period of time to continue a dialogue with Magnuson, “so he continues to have his dream.”
“If I might, Mr. Serpone, you’ve come very close to my making a motion to revoke the license,” Selectman Daniel Horgan said after the testimony was finished. “This kind of repeated behavior is egregious, especially after you’ve been trained, requested to come in to be trained, and then ignored the training.”
“We want our businesses to be successful here” Horgan said, “but these rules are in place for a reason. We’ve got neighbors to be concerned about.”
Several of those neighbors stood before the board to give testimony about loud music that continued to be played after 11 p.m.
Serpone asked the board for understanding, saying The Music Room has held 105 live shows with no complaints.
He said The Music Room was a complex business, with scheduling music acts, running a recording studio and operating a bar, food service and art gallery.
“There’s a learning curve,” he said. “We are doing our best. I ask for your mercy.”
This was The Music Room’s second violation to be brought before the Select Board. On Aug. 31, The Music Room was one of four Yarmouth venues that received warnings at a licensing show-cause hearing before the Select Board.
Serpone did not attend a June 30 compliance training session and said he contracted COVID-19 and couldn’t make it.
Serpone is also the founder of Levee Breaks Investment Group, which was sanctioned by the state for selling unlicensed securities and for not being registered with the state’s Securities Division, as required by Massachusetts law. LBI filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy on Oct. 22 leaving about 55 LBI investors worried they will lose their money.
Serpone gave no comment after the hearing.
Contact Denise Coffey at dcoffey@capecodonline.com. Follow her on Twitter: @DeniseCoffeyCCT.
