Heated Meeting May Lead to More Hearings On Koullshi License

Last week’s meeting about the of the liquor license for —the smoking lounge under —left a number of people angry, and the Charlestown Neighborhood Council may hold more meetings on the matter.

Charlestown Patch was not at the Wednesday, June 20 meeting, and learned on Friday that attendees were “disgusted” by how Neighborhood Councilor Bill Galvin ran the event.

“It's one thing when people who have different opinions get emotional,” said commenter Noreen Manning, “but the angry SLAMMING of the hand on the table by Bill Galvin, who is supposed to be the MODERATOR of the meeting, was inappropriate and served to set a very hostile environment.”

Following the comments, Charlestown Patch contacted Galvin for response, and he got back to us Tuesday.

“It was heated,” Galvin said in an email. “At the heart of the problem is LATE NIGHT NOISE. The neighbors described the continuous beeping of horns from taxis and cars backed up due to cars outside the restaurant. And loud noise from inebriated customers who swear and yell outside their windows.”

Galvin’s email continued:

“The owner said he would meet with the abutters to help resolve any problems, but the abutters said that he always says that he will meet with them but never does,” Galvin said. “He has deceived the council in the past (proposed doubling the size of his space, which we approved, and then filed to triple the size with the city). So he has little credibility in the community although he certainly has his supporters.”

Galvin said the subcommittee hosting the meeting did not take a vote because it did not have enough members present, but “the council is prepared to host further meetings to facilitate a resolution.”