New Haven Independent

This is a typical weekend scene in downtown New Haven’s nightclub sector, explained many concerned residents at Thursday’s Downtown-Wooster Square Community Management meeting.

The meeting had been called to discuss general quality of life issues in the Downtown-Wooster Square communities. The discussion focused mainly on the nightclubs. And with these noise complaints — compounded with last weekend’s murder outside of Center Street Lounge on September 19th — there was much to talk about.

A panel of city officials took questions and comments from residents, such as Josh Erlanger, pictured, who came to the meeting “hoping to hear about how to city plans to clean up after the shooting.”

One attendee in particular, Center Street Lounge owner Jonathan Lucibeli, received a round of applause following his address to the community.

Lucibeli acknowledged his short tenure as nightclub owner. He explained the ways in which his club works to maintain order. They pat everyone down, check purses, and turn away anyone wearing clothing that resembles gang paraphernalia, he said.

(Earlier this month the state temporarily shut down the bar for illegally serving minors.)

Center Street Lounge, like other clubs in downtown New Haven, pays local police officers to assist in maintaining order outside their clubs over the busy weekends. In total, downtown bars and nightclubs spend nearly $2 million a year out of their own pockets on law enforcement, said police officer Dave Hartman (pictured).

In addition to the eight to ten officers hired by local clubs from Thursday through Saturday nights, the city provides an additional six to eight officers who patrol the streets on official “Bar Detail.”

Unfortunately, the night of the shooting, no police officer was working for the Center Street Lounge. But “we are working with the New Haven police to make [the club] safer,” Lucibeli said. “The shooting was very upsetting to us.”

“I’m only a phone call away,” he told residents.

When the clubs close around 2 am, thousands of drunken people pour into the streets. Police officers try to clear them out as efficiently as possible, but there is no perfect solution, neighbors were told.

“It’s very chaotic,” said Lt. Marty Tchakirides, pictured at the top of the story. Tchakirides said the police department will be rolling out a number of initiatives in the next few weeks.