New York Supreme Court upholds revocation of La Vie's liquor license

[Via Flickr]

In late November, the State Liquor Authority revoked La Vie's liquor license on East First Street. (The license had apparently expired in February 2011, but La Vie had been operating under the NY State Administrative Procedures Act, aka SAPA).

In December, we were told that La Vie's lawyers "petitioned a court for a stay of the SLA's decision based on financial hardship while the Article 78 proceeding is pending."

Now it appears as if the ongoing battle between La Vie and its neighbors is over: Last Thursday, the 1st Department of the Appellate Division of the New York Supreme Court upheld the revocation of La Vie's liquor license. (You can find a PDF with the decision here. (Starts on page 88.)

The decision, in part, reads:

Evidence supporting the sustained charges includes numerous complaint reports, as well as the testimony of two police officers and an investigator employed by respondent, detailing incidents of ... disorderly activity, assaults, and violations of fire and safety regulations at petitioner’s premises in violation of sections 106(6), 114(6) and 118 of the Alcoholic Beverage Control Law and the Rules of the State Liquor Authority.

And.

The record shows that petitioner has a lengthy history of violations and there is no indication that petitioner took any steps to prevent the repeated incidents of disorderly conduct on or about its premises ...

We have considered petitioner’s remaining arguments, including that respondent improperly considered evidence outside the record of the proceedings when issuing its determination, and find them unavailing.

Neighbors have long complained that La Vie was operating as a club under the guise of a restaurant. According to residents speaking out at past CB3/SLA meetings, the dance music emanating from the club was loud and disruptive to their quality of life ... and they claim there was often chaos in the streets as patrons entered and exited.

Records on file with the State Liquor Authority show that the liquor license has expired.



There's no mention of an impending closure on La Vie's website or Facebook page. The last message is from Saturday, and it reads: "SATURDAYS AT LA VIE ARE LIKE NO OTHER!!! JOIN US FOR AN AMAZING TIME!!"

Previously on EV Grieve:
[Updated] La Vie closed for now on East First Street