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Bayonne council overturns denial of Michelle Solar’s ABC bar permit appeal
Summary
The Bayonne Municipal Council overturned the denial of Michelle Solar’s application for an ABC bar permit after reviewing letters of support and an eligibility letter from a Deputy Attorney General; police licensing staff said the AG’s office is advisory and offered no new objections.
The Municipal Council of the City of Bayonne voted to overturn the denial of Michelle Solar’s appeal of an ABC bar permit on Sept. 10, 2025, after hearing statements from Solar, council members and licensing staff.
Council members reviewed written support for Solar, including a letter the meeting record identifies as from Deputy Attorney General Alicia Caldwell that addressed eligibility. Solar told the council she had been arrested in the past but said most charges were dismissed and that she was not found guilty of “a crime involving moral turpitude,” a distinction she said is relevant to licensing decisions.
Detective Lieutenant Plichoy of the licensing permission unit, speaking on behalf of Chief Keiser, told the council he did not have additional information to add and reminded members that the Attorney General’s office has an advisory role — not a directive role — in the city’s issuance of work or licensing permits. A speaker who identified themselves as a former police officer said they had reviewed the police report and expressed surprise at aspects of it but did not advocate for denying the appeal.
Multiple council members said they were willing to give Solar a second chance. After discussion and consideration of the letters and testimony, the presiding official announced the council’s decision to overturn the denial and allow Solar to proceed with the permit process.
The council did not record a roll-call vote for this overturn in the excerpted portion of the transcript; the announcement in the meeting record is “Overturned.” The council’s action follows its practice of treating appeals from the licensing officer as matters for elected officials to decide after reviewing evidence and advisory input from police and the Attorney General’s office.
