By Lori Carlson, Editor

Figure out a way to get along.

That’s the message City Council members gave the owners of Captain Jack’s bar and restaurant – and the neighbors who live near it – after a nearly two-hour discussion Monday night.

The council tabled a decision on the bar owners’ request to allow parking on part of Green Heights Trail. They will revisit the decision in two weeks.

Several council members said they would not have approved the request if they’d been forced to make a decision Monday.

About 15 people attended a public hearing on the parking proposal. But the focus strayed far from parking at times, as residents complained about noise, litter and drunk and disorderly patrons they say rob them of peace and quiet.

“There’s a natural conflict” having a restaurant and bar in the midst of a residential neighborhood, said Pat Stevens, who owns a home on Dutch Avenue.

Restaurant owners Karen and Rich Sweet asked the city to allow parking along a 200-foot segment of Green Heights Trail, in front of a vacant lot. The owner of the lot, Dan O’Keefe, put up boulders and a gate earlier this year to block patrons from parking on his property. Previously, bar-goers had illegally parked in the gravel lot when parking overflowed from the bar lot.

Council members said allowing parking on part of Green Heights Trail could alleviate problems with patrons parking on other streets in the neighborhood and walking – or stumbling – through private yards. But they said it’s unlikely the estimated six to nine parking spots would adequately address the business’ parking issues or residents’ complaints.

The portion of Green Heights Trail in front of the vacant lot is 26-feet wide, narrower than the typical city street.

Mayor Jack Haugen and other council members urged residents and the Sweets to meet regularly, facilitated by city staff, to find solutions to the conflict.

“This isn’t about nine parking stalls. If we think it is, we’re kidding ourselves,” Haugen said before urging the parties to “coexist” and “compromise.”

City staff, the bar’s owners and some residents met recently to hash out issues. Another meeting is scheduled for 10 a.m. Saturday, June 28 at Captain Jack’s.

Parking

If Captain Jack’s parking is allowed on Green Heights Trail, the city would add gravel in the right of way and put up signs urging patrons to pull their cars off the road and straddle the flat curb and gravel area, said Public Works Director Steve Albrecht.

The boulders placed along the entrance to the vacant lot are in the city’s right of way and will need to be moved back regardless of the council’s decision on parking, he said.

The city’s traffic safety committee agreed the parking request would be acceptable, but its members wanted the City Council to allow residents to comment during a public hearing.

Some residents said they’re worried that parking along the already-narrow street would inhibit emergency vehicles. Albrecht said there’s adequate room for emergency vehicles.

The added parking spots “should not have substantial impact on traffic safety on Green Heights Trail,” Albrecht said.

The city would have to spend about $500 a year to maintain the boulevard if parking is allowed on-street, a cost Captain Jack’s likely would pay, Albrecht said.

‘It’s not just a bar’

The long-standing conflict between the bar and the neighborhood continues. On Monday, residents said they’ve had to put up with loud voices, litter, drunken patrons sleeping under their windows, used condoms on their lawns and car doors slamming until 2 a.m. on the weekends.

Many said they like having a restaurant on the lake, but they believe Captain Jack’s has gotten too big for its own good.

“Captain Jack’s is a nice restaurant and gracious in the way they approach the community. There’s kind of a conflict of interest between a restaurant and enterprise that’s growing, with lots of people coming and going at night, at times when people want to have rest and peace and quiet,” said Stevens, who rents a home on Dutch Avenue to Ken McQuade and his family.

McQuade said neighbors have started picking up the trash in the right of way and in yards. He said since they told the Sweets about the problem, they have sent Captain Jack’s employees out to pick up the trash.

“So, that is getting better,” McQuade said.

Homeowners near Captain Jack’s say they’ve always been concerned about cars speeding along local streets to get to and from the restaurant.

“Cars come out of Captain Jack’s pretty fast. The brush is high right on that corner, so you can’t see around it. Someone’s going to have an accident,” said Tom Sylvester, who lives on Roanoke Street.

Melanie and Dan Sheedy, who live on Green Heights Trail across from the bar, want the city to “take a stand” on how much expansion the bar is allowed.

Melanie Sheedy said she has seen people urinate in her yard and cars turn around and even park in her driveway.

“Two weeks ago, there was a drunk sleeping under my window,” she said.

“When we moved to this neighborhood, we saw the bar as an asset. We thought, ‘We can go down there and have a drink,’” she said. “What makes it bad is it’s not just a bar. It’s a sporting venue that has multiple events, a concert hall that has live bands. It’s a marina with 75-plus boats.

“If it was just a bar, I don’t think my neighborhood would be affected,” Sheedy said.

Karen Sweet said she and her husband “understand we have a big responsibility. It’s the only restaurant left on the lake.

“We believe that compared to other lakes around us, like Spring Lake, the lakeshore properties on Prior Lake are elevated because there is a restaurant on the lake,” Sweet said.

“We want to be a good neighbor. We are trying to be a good neighbor,” Sweet added. “We want to increase our food sales. We’ve started to have neighborhood meetings. If there are other suggestions for how to make it better, we would love to hear them.”

Other residents, including some employees of Captain Jack’s, defended the restaurant.

“The smoking ban has something to do with it [the noise],” said Mark Nelson, a part-time bartender who lives on Fremont Avenue, across the lake from Captain Jack’s.

“When the ban came into effect, people would go out the back door, to the parking lot, and smoke,” Nelson said. “The owners are trying to get people to go to the lake side and the deck to smoke. I think that’s made a big difference.”

Nelson said the employees lock the back door at 10 p.m. so people can’t get back in if they go out that way to smoke. He also said employees are required to answer the phone and address complaints right away.

Nelson’s wife, Laura, said the restaurant is “a huge asset to the community.

“It brings in families with children who want to have a meal. It’s not just drunks sleeping in people’s yards,” she said.

She said if the city doesn’t allow the business to have “viable” parking options, “people are still going to park somewhere – six blocks away” – and walk through the neighborhood.

Councilman Steve Millar suggested that the bar owners could hire security to patrol the parking lot on weekends after 10 p.m.

“The Sweets perhaps need to take a look at the capacity of the bar and how many more people they can bring in,” he said.

“I want them to succeed; I just don’t want them to succeed at everyone else’s expense,” Councilman Chad LeMair added.

Councilman Warren Erickson asked whether the city should reconsider the bar’s 2 a.m. closing time since it’s in the middle of a residential neighborhood.

Haugen said he and the council voted in favor of a 2 a.m. closing time a few years ago “because we didn’t want to chase people to Savage or Shakopee to be drinking from 12 o’clock on. We didn’t want to force people who’ve been drinking onto the streets.”

Police Chief Bill O’Rourke said his department doesn’t have a specific plan to address the Captain Jack’s area.

“We have bars spread out throughout town. By their nature, cops tend to gravitate toward busy spots,” O’Rourke said. “They spend a lot of time downtown because a couple of the bars have more of a rowdy reputation. So, the cops go fishing where the fishing is good.”

O’Rourke added that so far this year, only four noise complaints have been made about Captain Jack’s, and two of those were on the same night. In 2007, the police received 46 calls about the bar, including complaints about noise, vandalism and other problems. Police got half that many calls about the bar in 2006.

On a related note, the council postponed discussion on a request from Captain Jack’s for an ordinance change allowing outdoor entertainment at restaurants with a liquor license. Haugen cited the late hour of the meeting and the fact that council members want bar owners and neighbors to meet again first.

 “I think the solution is to have neighbors regularly meet with the owners and figure out a way to make things work,” Councilman Ken Hedberg said.

“You’re going to have to get along, because neither of you is going away,” Millar added.

 Lori Carlson can be reached at (952) 345-6378 or editor@plamerican.com.

What do you think? Is Captain Jack's a boon to the lake, a burden to the neighborhood, or a little of both? What can be done to ease the complaints from residents? Talk about it here: http://www.plamerican.com/community/forums/read-and-respond/captain-jacks-boon-lake-scourge-neighborhood-or-little-bit-both