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Spargo's owner accepts plea agreement: $1,250 fine and two weekends of suspended alcohol sales
Summary
Spargo's owner Tulsi Geary agreed to a negotiated plea resolving multiple violations, including serving a minor and presence of minors, resulting in a $1,250 fine and six-day suspension of alcohol sales split across two weekends.
The Board of License Commissioners accepted a negotiated plea Tuesday with the owner of Spargo’s Restaurant and Bar addressing a series of violations the county alleged, including the sale of alcohol to a minor, presence of minors on licensed premises, failure to maintain alcohol-awareness training coverage and concerns about public peace and safety.
Assistant county attorney Liz Moore summarized the county’s proposed resolution: a $1,250 fine and a six-day suspension of alcohol sales to be served across two weekends. Moore asked the board to consider one suspension weekend immediately to demonstrate seriousness. The board voted to accept the agreement with the suspension scheduled for the coming weekend and the following weekend, and directed counsel to prepare a written order for the file.
Owner Tulsi (Tulsi) Geary offered a written statement and spoke in mitigation, describing a long career in hospitality and the financial stakes in the business. “This business is not just a restaurant, it is my family's life,” Geary said, explaining that his home is pledged as collateral for the loan that supports the restaurant and that he has invested substantial capital in renovations and operations. Geary and his counsel described steps the business has taken since county and police attention began, including requiring staff certification, changing outdoor speaker use, restricting patio hours after 9 p.m., and increasing oversight of mixed groups and DJ bookings.
County inspectors and police reports cited multiple incidents at or near the premises in the last year and earlier; the record includes several police responses and a DUI related to patrons. The county said the plea was negotiated in good faith but noted that if the board declined the proposed resolution, the case could proceed to a full contested hearing. The board accepted the plea and instructed county and licensee counsel to prepare a written order documenting the sanction and the board’s findings.
