From time to time Capital Punishment is misleading, as a ray of shining brilliance pierces the clouds of the local media and shines on us. Such is the case here: this letter appeared on July 2.
I applaud the Ward 1 residents who wrote to The Capital in approval of 2 a.m. liquor licenses for all.
Me too! Go on.
They were a welcome breath of fresh sea air to dissipate a small and stagnant pool of antiquity.
I've got to get this fella to write a guest column. Most of my putdowns of Ward 1 stalwarts involve some type of yachting reference, but he has referred to them as a small and stagnant pool of antiquity! Nice. And remember folks, not all Ward 1 residents are part of this stagnant pool.
Annapolis is a home for the 21st century as well as a tourist destination. Unbelievably, a minority of Ward 1 residents are actually petitioning to make all businesses with liquor licences stop serving at midnight.
Right-O.
All other wards grant 2 a.m. licenses. How is it that West Street residents are old enough to know when it is time to go to bed, but not those in Ward 1?
Well, now we've got some zoning issues, some equity issues, and a bedtime issue. Let's just move on.
We are asked to believe that if two more downtown establishments are allowed to stay open until 2 a.m., it would make people sick on the streets and cover Ward 1 with prophylactics.
YES! EXCELLENT! Factual note: it would actually be 4 bars: Castlebay, Mangia, Gallway Bay, Sly Fox---all of which are no more than 50 feet away from a bar that has a 2 a.m license.
Castlebay Irish Pub and Restaurant has been in town for a dozen years. The proprietor is Vince Quinlan, who decided to make Annapolis his home after playing at two presidential inaugural balls.
Factual note: Of the other bars to be affected: the Fox brothers have lived in this area for some 30 years, and opened a historic property that had been vacant in one of the two oldest buildings in Annapolis. The Priola family (owner of Mangia and Marias), has been in the city for as long as I have been alive. Galway Bay, according to its Web Site, is owned by Irish Restaurant Company Inc., a conglomerate that also operates locations in Davidsonville and in the Market House.
Vince has supported countless charities, and made Castlebay a gathering place for music and friendship. There are strict limits, to avoid excessive consumption. Vince has helped make modern Annapolis the town that people want to live in and visit.
Ditto, most everyone else who lives or works here.
I support Vince's efforts to allow his business to stay open like the rest of the downtown establishments. It is time to support those who make Annapolis the great town it is and not allow mendacity to tell us what to do.
ARTHUR SCHWARTZ, Annapolis
Great closing. Top notch.
