Posted: Jan. 27, 2010

Brown Deer — The Village Board on Monday tabled a public hearing to review demerit points for Bradley's Jazz Club, 4740 W. Bradley Road, in light of two new issues concerning the club.

The Police Department assigns demerit points to establishments serving alcohol each time the license holder is convicted of an offense. Bradley's had repeated noise violations and one battery incident causing it to have more than the 275 demerits allowed over a two-year period. Based on the hearing, the board could rescind or suspend the license for a period of time.

Village Manager Russell Van Gompel said the village has received a liquor license application from Theresa Wigley, who currently runs a catering operation from the club. Wigley has proposed leasing the building and operating a supper club and holding wedding receptions and other banquet-type events. Lewis Anyanwu, who had been running the jazz club for the last few years, currently holds the liquor license and has not surrendered it.

Anyanwu and his partners Arlis Jones and Michael Kern, who formed AJK Wisconsin to buy the jazz club building and operate the club, are embroiled in a civil case over the ownership of the property. That case is scheduled for a hearing in Milwaukee County Circuit Court on Feb. 5.

The board will wait for more information about the leasing arrangement and civil suit before taking any action on the hearing.

Van Gompel said the Feb. 1 agenda had been purposely kept light because of the public hearing on Bradley's. Because the board tabled the hearing, there will be no Village Board meeting that night. The next scheduled meeting will be Feb. 15.