The Division of Alcohol Beverage Control stripped the liquor license from a New York winery after several outrageous complaints were reported against the business.
Officials announced Thursday that Vineyard 48, located in Cutchogue, on the North Fork of Long Island, has been permanently shut down.
The winery was initially suspended in early October after the Southold Police Department reported 911 calls from residents in the vicinity complaining about patrons fornicating in lawns, urinating and defecating on public property and causing unruly noise.
The decision was made by members of the the state liquor authority, or SLA, during a board meeting this month, according to patch.com.
Vineyard 48, a winery in Long Island, New York, abruptly shut down this month after authorities received numerous complaints
Complaints included patrons fornicating in lawns, urinating and defecating on public property and causing unruly noise
The Division of Alcohol Beverage Control stripped the liquor license from the New York winery
After police went to assess the situation in September, they ‘observed an extremely intoxicated male patron who caused a disturbance in the rear of the establishment as well as an intoxicated woman who was unable to stand on her own,’ SLA said.
Just hours later, the department received yet another call, citing hundreds of intoxicated people at the vineyard involved in a violent brawl.
Last year, police responded to at least three alcohol overdoses at the premises and four physical altercations, which involved nearby residents of Cutchogue.
The government office said the vineyard had ‘long bathroom lines, some 30 people deep, led to patrons wandering off the premises to urinate and defecate on the properties of neighboring residents,’ according to an SLA statement.
Residents of Cutchogue said they were ‘thrilled’ to hear of the closure, after months and years spent dealing with the turmoil
The government office said the vineyard had ‘long bathroom lines, some 30 people deep, led to patrons wandering off the premises to urinate and defecate on the properties of neighboring residents’
The winery faces as many as 30 related charges in Southold Town Justice Court
Southold Town Supervisor Scott Russell deemed the vineyard to be ‘a menace’ and ‘ blight on the community,’ calling the length of time it took to strip its license a ‘shame.’
Management officials at Vineyard 48 initially denied the slew of allegations against them in hopes to re-open after the suspension – which proved to be unsuccessful.
‘It’s been a long road,’ said Southold Town Attorney Bill Duffy.
‘We wish we could have had action sooner, but we’ve been on top of it and diligent and we finally got results.
‘We’re happy the SLA moved forward to suspend their license,’ he said, while adding the business has made violations to their contract several times in the past summer alone.
Last year, police responded to at least three alcohol overdoses at the premises and four physical altercations, which involved nearby residents
The winery faces as many as 30 related charges in Southold Town Justice Court, according to patch.com.
Residents of Cutchogue were overjoyed to hear about the news this month.
Bill and Beth Shipman have been pushing to address the issues for several years, and called the operation a threat to public ‘health and safety’ during a recent board meeting.
Another resident, Susan Tyler, said she was simply ‘thrilled.’
‘At other wineries, people come out, they go to a few wineries, they have dinner, maybe walk around Greenport, so they potentially spend a little money ‘out here’,’ Tyler said.
‘(At) Vineyard 48, people come out on party buses, drink on the way out, get the rest of the way loaded there, get back on the buses, have to pull over to vomit, then go back home.’
Management officials at Vineyard 48 initially denied the slew of allegations against them in hopes to re-open after the suspension – which proved to be unsuccessful