LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC) officials say a restaurant in downtown Louisville was under the agency's watch for weeks prior to it becoming a crime scene over the weekend.
Two people were killed, and five others were hurt, at the Southern Restaurant and Lounge early Sunday morning after a shooting. It’s unclear at this time what led up to the incident.
Tuesday, Lieutenant Brad Silveria, director of ABC, said his agency started looking into the business in July. City officials also mentioned details conducted at the Southern at a news conference Sunday.
Officials received an initial complaint about a large gathering of people on July 10. The building's limit capacity was previously set to 105 by the fire marshal, officials said.
“Every weekend since July 10, we’ve had eyes on this location and paid attention to the business operations and how it was going,” Silveria said.
According to a social media post, the Southern was celebrating its final night at its West Market Street location at the time of the shooting. Louisville Metro Police estimated there were 200-300 people there.
David James, deputy mayor of Emergency Services, said there were problems with the way the business was operating. He alluded to it being a bar posing as a restaurant during a news conference Sunday.
State records show the restaurant had a retail drink license and a supplemental license allowing it to sell alcohol until 4 a.m.
Silveria explained restaurant alcohol licenses, like the one the Southern has, require the establishment to have at least 50% of revenue in food sales.
“Essentially, the operation was under investigation as to whether or not they were qualifying and meeting all the requirements of a restaurant license, and so that part is preliminary and I can't discuss that any further” Silveria said.
'My job is to hold them accountable.'
Silveria said ABC enforcement comes from a combination of first-hand observations by officers and reports from the community. The state also has an auditor who can verify if restaurants are selling enough food to meet the requirements of their licenses.
“When bars misbehave, and they do things – the senseless violence that took place at this bar – my job is to hold them accountable and take their license away,” Silveria said. “You don’t have a right to sell alcohol in Kentucky, it’s privilege and that privilege can be taken away.”
Over the weekend, Silveria asked state ABC officials for an investigation that could potentially lead to the emergency termination of the Southern's license. He said the power to revoke licenses falls to the state.
Silveria said the business owner had also signed a lease termination agreement and the lease for the current location will expire August 31st.
He said the ABC’s investigation remains ongoing and Southern’s ownership is also under investigation.
Within hours of the deadly shooting, Mayor Craig Greenberg urged Metro Council to discuss whether bars in Louisville should close at 2 a.m., rather than 4 a.m.
Then-Councilwoman Cassie Chambers Armstrong made a similar, temporary, proposal to address violence two years ago.
At the time, bar owners told WHAS11 they didn't feel responsible businesses should be punished for the actions of a few problem businesses. Chambers-Armstrong ended up pulling the ordinance, instead working with a Late Night Safety workgroup to come up with best practices for businesses, and supporting funding for additional positions at Alcoholic Beverage Control.
More recently, her predecessor, Councilman Ben Reno-Weber (D-District 8), floated the idea of closing bars early after a shooting in Deer Park. Tuesday, Reno-Weber said Metro Council needs to take a holistic approach.
"This is one possible tool in a much broader set of strategic investments that we are making and need to make," Reno-Weber said. “The most responsible thing council can do is follow the data around what works.”
Reno-Weber also noted funding additional overtime for ABC officers for enforcement could be an option. He said the intersection of state and local regulations makes addressing business operations a challenge and the city will have to work with legislators in Frankfort on additional measures.
Reno-Weber said most businesses in the city are good neighbors and council will need to engage with them too.
“The real question I have is how do we most thoughtfully push forward an agenda that is not just a band-aid, that is a real strategic investment in solutions," he said.
Asked about the idea of shutting bars down early, Silveria said he will enforce “whatever’s on the books.”
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