Ordinance and Licensing Committee approves multiple operator and business licenses, defers one bartender application pending employer confirmation

The Waukesha City Ordinance and Licensing Committee on Monday, Sept. 22 approved a set of bartender/operator licenses, an extension of premises for Club 400 and a junk-dealer license application, and deferred one bartender application pending the appearance of the applicant’s prospective employer.

The committee approved renewal and new operator licenses for Jeffrey Bernhardt Jr., Isabella Strader and Dallas Kinski and approved an invited license for Megan Jo Meyer. The committee also approved an extension of premises for Club 400 (For the Record LLC) for a downtown event and granted a junk-dealer license application for Waukesha Iron and Metal. Those approvals were unanimous in committee and will appear on the council consent agenda, committee members said.

The committee deferred the application of James Davis, a first-time bartender applicant, and asked him to return with the agent from the business that intends to hire him — identified in the meeting as Bosco’s — before the committee makes a final decision. Committee members said they were troubled by portions of Davis’s background record and wanted the prospective employer to acknowledge they had reviewed his record and still intended to hire him.

Committee members said they review licensing requests under the broad discretion granted in state statute 125 and typically weigh an applicant’s full record, including any recent incidents that suggest a pattern of behavior. One committee member said they would feel more comfortable acting if the hiring agent confirmed they understood the applicant’s record and were willing to take responsibility for him on the premises.

During the hearing, James Davis described several past disorderly-conduct charges and said some were dismissed; he told the committee he had full custody of his children and that family responsibilities kept him on a steady path. The committee noted a mix of older and some more recent entries in Davis’s record and set a return date for his application at the committee meeting scheduled for Oct. 13. The committee also clarified that an unlicensed applicant may serve only when another licensed operator is on the premises.

For Jeffrey Bernhardt Jr., the committee heard from Ben Gidlasky, identified as the club supervisor for the Waukesha Elks Lodge, who said Bernhardt was a long-time volunteer and had been sober and complying with required programs following a single incident. The committee approved Bernhardt’s renewal after a motion and second, and members noted the matter will go on the council consent agenda and that Bernhardt was welcome to attend the council meeting if he wished.

Isabella Strader’s application was approved after her employer’s representative (Tanya Kowalski) attended the hearing. Dallas Kinski’s renewal was approved after the applicant and his agent (Sarah Kramer of Let’s Roll Tobacco and Liquor Store) confirmed Kinski’s ongoing employment and that he had taken steps since a prior incident.

The committee approved Club 400’s request to extend its licensed premises for a downtown event (For the Record LLC) and approved a junk-dealer license application filed by Waukesha Iron and Metal; both motions passed unanimously. Several items that had no invitees or missing applicants (including applications for Samantha Dofek and Grace Davis) were held over to a future meeting.

Votes at a glance - Jeffrey Bernhardt Jr., renewal: approved by motion (seconded); committee recorded the approval as unanimous; will be placed on council consent agenda. - Isabella Strader, operator license: approved by motion (seconded); unanimous; will be placed on council consent agenda. - Dallas Kinski, operator license: approved by motion (seconded); unanimous; will be placed on council consent agenda. - Megan Jo Meyer, operator license (invited/other application): approved by motion (seconded); unanimous; consent agenda. - Club 400 / For the Record LLC, extension of premises (event on William Street): approved by motion (seconded); unanimous. - Waukesha Iron and Metal, junk-dealer license: approved by motion (seconded); unanimous. - James Davis, first-time bartender/operator application: deferred to Oct. 13; committee asked applicant to bring the hiring agent from Bosco’s; applicant may serve only when another licensed operator is on the premises.

The committee chair closed the meeting at 6:42 p.m.; members said approved licenses will go to the next council meeting (dates given during the hearing ranged from Oct. 2 to Oct. 7 for council action), and the Davis application return date was set for Oct. 13.