By Kevin Coughlin
The retractable roof is gone. So is a proposed bowling alley.
But the Walsh family still intends to build a restaurant/ bar next to its Tashmoo Restaurant & Bar on DeHart Street in Morristown.
And the family is challenging an 11 pm curfew on alcohol sales stipulated by the town council among terms of a 2013 approval.
The same battle is being waged around the corner, where Jimmy Cavanaugh, owner of the Iron Bar, is trying to overturn a similar condition attached to his expansion into the yet-unopened Iron Bistro on South Street.
In revised plans submitted to the council just before Christmas, DeHart Associates LLC now proposes:
- A permanent roof, instead of a retractable one.
- Increased basement storage, from 3,699 square feet to 5,976 square feet.
- A slight reduction in the size of the first floor, from 6,779 square feet to 6,019 square feet.
- A slight increase in the the second floor size, from 1,987 square feet to 2,021 square feet.
- A reconfiguration of the bar that won’t alter the allotted number of 44 stools.
- UPDATE: An enlarged courtyard, increasing from six tables with 24 seats and no canopy to 11 tables totaling 48 seats, with an outdoor kitchen and bar with 23 bar seats and a partial roof/canopy.
The biggest requested change, however, is an unspecified “modification to the restriction that no alcohol shall be served after 11 pm.”
That condition was meant to placate residents who testified they were fed up with drunken late-night behavior spilling from Morristown’s downtown bars.
Two council members who supported the curfew, Rebecca Feldman and Raline Smith-Reid, have stepped down, and it remains to be seen where their successors, Bob Iannaccone and Hiliari Davis Oyesanya, stand on the issue.
Already, several nearby residents have registered objections to the updated Tashmoo plans, said Town Clerk Kevin Harris. He said he awaits guidance from town attorneys on the next step; he is hopeful the proposal can be heard by the council in late January or early February.
Town Attorney Vij Pawar said on Tuesday that he has not seen the plans yet.
Robert Williams, the lawyer representing both the Walsh family and Cavanaugh, did not return calls seeking comment. Attempts to reach DeHart Associates members David and Kevin Walsh and Matthew Wirths were unsuccessful on Tuesday.
Both Tashmoo and the Iron Bar have obtained conditional approvals to extend their liquor licenses to adjacent properties.
The Iron Bar is contiguous with the Iron Bistro space. Tashmoo is not attached to an adjacent house, and the latest architectural renderings do not appear to show any physical connection going forward.
According to the DeHart Associates application, Morristown resident Milton Goldband owns the Tashmoo building at 8 DeHart St.
The adjacent property at 10 DeHart — which briefly housed a lunch spot called DeHarty’s — belongs to an entity controlled by William Walsh, the Livingston patriarch of a family whose members are principals in Tashmoo, Sona 13 and Veronica’s in Morristown.
Before winning a conditional approval in May 2013, Walsh family members had been rebuffed over plans for a bowling alley/bar, and then for a series of tent events with alcohol at 10 DeHart St.
The Iron Bistro case, meanwhile, went to the state Division of Alcoholic Beverage Control last month. A full-blown hearing was anticipated, but the ABC’s new commissioner instead conferred with lawyers for both sides. The alcohol curfew remains in effect, until the new town council decides how it wants to proceed, said Elnardo Webster II, the assistant town attorney.
“There is a complex matrix of choices,” Webster said. “The council felt strongly about what it wanted to do, but felt they needed consensus of the new members,” who were scheduled to to be sworn in on Jan. 5, 2016.
Kevin Harris, the town clerk, said the Iron Bistro case could be addressed by the council later this month.
Your the reporter why are you trying to blame the attorneys. Why publish here say.
Kevin, I gave you a copy of the order from the State, the clerk has it also. You should research the facts before you publish erroneous information. This is a public document. I’m sure mr Webster didn’t supply you with false information as he is an astute attorney.
Elnardo Webster, the assistant town attorney, tells us the curfew remains in effect. I have reached out to your lawyer several times without a response.
Kevin, the alcohol curfew is not in effect, it was lifted by the state, please correct your article.
JT, your on target, memos from the PD don’t back up the allegations made by some who have commented. I can only speak for iron bar, which has had no violation for serving minors or any other infractions. As a matter of fact in the 35 years I have operated in Morristown there had never been 1 incident of serving underage patrons. As a former law enforcement agent. My experience has resulted in an impeccable record. I understand some are not happy with the direction Morristown has taken but it is a city and the county seat. Thankfully we prosper in these troubled times. Take note that iron bar employees 2 off duty police officers Thursday Friday and Saturday nights.
It seems that an 11PM curfew for certain bars or certain rooms in existing bars is haphazard applied and discriminatory and likely won’t be upheld. Unless those folks were planning on going home at 11 anyway, it will do little or nothing to impact the overall bar population…those people will just move along to another bar that is still open. While there is much anecdotal evidence of underage admission and the various mischief cause by bar patrons, it would be interesting to see what the police records actually reflect regarding these types of problems. I recall that the various drinking related tickets and arrests on parade day were very insignificant compared to the number of visitors to town that day.
Lisa- that sounds like a cop issue and less of a bar issue. Maybe there needs to be more cops patrolling wherever you live during those hours.
Let’s be honest …… Many that come to these bars are under age …. And the ones that are not are 20-25 years olds who only come to Morristown to get intoxicated ….. I can tell you many of them park their cars on Maple ….. Drink a few shots or beers in the car first and then head over to the bars as they can’t afford to drink all night long and like to give themselves a head start . I can tell you that from Thursday thru Sat night we are woken up at 1-2 am with these youngsters screaming, fighting , breaking things…. Vomiting and urinating on our front lawns ….. I’m sorry but if we are looking to generate business here and make this town great and desirable this is not the way to do it …. As a tax payer , quite frankly it’s become repulsive to watch …. I am in favor of the curfew and think we have enough bars in Morristown !!!!!
Still bummed about the bowling alley thing. The closest ones are all pretty far and sad on the inside.
Is it too late for a bowling alley? C’mon!
I’m all for business in Town. What I am not for is the unregulated expansion of liquor licenses. Where will it stop? With enough money, feasibly one person, or family can buy A license and have a block long bar with 1000’s of seats under one liquor license. The council has to reign in these expansions. The Walsh’s have now expanded a license to a NON CONTIGUOUS property??!!
Thank you Jim for pointing that out… I feel like some people in this town don’t want business. Morristown is extremely popular among many surrounding towns. That is why more and more people want to live here. I don’t understand people when they try and knock business. The residents in that area will be fine.
I am a resident and tax payer.
Let them serve past 11. Seriously, the increased revenue and property value that comes from making Morristown more attractive (and yes, people like gong to bars) will hopefully lighten the tax load.
Or do some people think that by having less “tourism” our property taxes will somehow go down?
Marge, what is wrong with you. You are a commissioner on the parking authority, the revenue generated in the evening in the garages is enormous so why do you criticise the businesses that generate these revenues. We pay substantial property taxes on the properties owned in morristown. You as a public figure should be sensitive to the business community, especially since there is no negative reports generated by the police department. This matter is brought about by a bunch of political hacks.
Let’s get the story right the restrictions have been lifted by the state for iron bistro. The burden is on Morristown to show why they should be reimposed. The place to place transfer cannot be rescinded. The ironic part of this arguement is iron bar and bistro will maintain the same occupancy.
Margret- actually I am… I am in the segment of this town that enjoys going out and is getting tired of the bars being so crowded you can’t even move. Having more options will help with the situation.
Matt S is obviously not a resident and probably not a Morristown taxpayer.
But I have to say this bar is desperately needed. The current ones are also over-crowded now and this would be a great addition.
A bowling alley really would have been awesome… too bad I guess