Keenan’s Liquor License Suspended, Closed for Irish Festival

* This article is from 2008. *
UPDATED Sept. 18, 2008 at 2 p.m.
NORTH WILDWOOD — Thirsty revelers at this city’s annual Irish Fall Festival can’t stop at Keenan’s, located on Olde New Jersey Avenue here, for a pint.
The bar’s doors will be closed during the popular festival after a Sept. 11 notice of an 80-day suspension from the state’s Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC).
According to the order, on June 7 members of the Cape May County Prosecutor’s Office along with ABC investigator Kevin Barber entered Keenan’s and found two underage males consuming alcohol. ABC Director Jerry Fisher then ordered that Keenan’s license be suspended for a period of 55 days, with an additional 25 days to be added at a later date.
Scott Keenan, co-owner of the bar, said that in the June 7 incident one person was 18, the other was 20.
“They showed valid Pennsylvania licenses to both the doorman and a roving ID checker,” Keenan said. “Both didn’t catch them. It was a mistake in judgment, human error.”
“We’re not saying we’re innocent,” Keenan told the Herald on Sept. 18. “But we’re not a corner bar. This place is 25,000 square feet and 3,500 people come through the door at a given time on a Saturday night.”
Keenan said that approximately 100,000 people come through their doors during the course of the summer. In 10 years, he said, “We’ve had four separate violations with a total of eight people caught.
“We’re one full city block long,” he said. “And this summer we’ve managed to confiscate 175 fake IDS. Unfortunately this time we couldn’t catch them.”
Keenan’s had scheduled 20 live bands and special events specifically scheduled for this weekend’s festival. Keenan estimated that he’s out $40,000 for the entertainment costs and stands to lose another $250,000 in gross sales in food and drinks.
This isn’t the first time Keenan’s has been associated with ABC violations. But attorney Scott Silver, representing owners Scott and Jack Keenan, said that each of the violations dealing with persons under the legal age had mitigating facts, such as when a 20-year-old female was drinking a beer given to her by her father and another incident when minors gained access by using licenses belong to older siblings.
On Feb. 1, 2008 Keenan’s owners entered a plea of non vult to charges that it served alcohol to those underage and received an 80-day suspension that was to be held in abeyance for two years so long as no other violations occurred.
The 80-day suspension didn’t just put a stop to the bar’s Irish Festival events. It also impacts, weddings, birthday parties and other private events that had booked the establishment for approaching dates.
The ABC order does provide for slight exceptions, Silver said, that enables a petition with supporting evidence to ask for permission from the ABC director to serve liquor at pre-booked events during the suspension period.
Keenan said that he has a weddings booked Oct. 4 and Oct. 11 that he hopes will be approved for the special consideration.
However, the Irish Festival doesn’t qualify for that special consideration, he said.
“We’re not innocent,” Keenan reiterated. “We’re just hurt. Hurt for the Irish community, the staff, and the city.”
“The emphasis of this festival is tradition and the AOH (Ancient Order of Hibernians), the food, and all the taverns add to that,” he added. “When you take an element away, it loses something.”
Keenan said he wants to extend his thanks to the city of North Wildwood and offer his apologies to his loyal customers.
The bar stands to reopen Nov. 1, but Keenan hasn’t planned any reopening event yet.
“I’d like to do something for the staff, but right now I just want to get through this weekend.”
Keenan plans to stay home with his wife and son this weekend, while his family and co-workers have plans to see the Eagles play on Sunday.
Contact Suit at: (609) 886-8600 ext. 25 or lsuit@cmcherald.com