Committee approves bartender license for Joseph A. Porter, 4–1, after discussion of OWI and recovery

The Waukesha City Ordinance and Licensing Committee voted 4–1 on March 24 to approve a bartender (operator) license application for Joseph A. Porter after hearing testimony and questioning about a prior alcohol-related conviction and Porter’s recovery efforts.

Porter told the committee he received an OWI in September 2023 after visiting a WIS Hope location to seek help for alcohol issues and said he is continuing recovery services and living in sober housing above the Salvation Army. He said he has an ignition interlock (Intoxalock) on his vehicle and has been in sober housing since November. Porter also described holding bartender licenses in other municipalities in the past and having about 13 years of bartending experience.

Committee members clarified that Porter’s application had been incorrectly marked as a renewal; he has never held a bartender license in the city of Waukesha and is therefore a first-time applicant in city records. Speaker 7 (identified in the transcript as Dan) explained that misclassification matters because a denial of a renewal triggers a different process than denial of a first-time application. Committee member Alicia said Porter appeared to be “on the right path” and moved to approve the application; the chair seconded. The committee approved the motion 4–1 and the chair advised Porter to attend the full council meeting on April 3 to present his case to the council, though the chair said he would speak on Porter’s behalf if Porter could not attend.

The committee’s approval is a recommendation to the full council; final licensing authority rests with the council. Committee members said a letter or agent presence from Porter’s employer, House of Guinness, would be helpful at council consideration if the employer cannot attend in person.