THE CITY OF SPRINGFIELD, MASSACHUSETTS

MAYOR DOMENIC J. SARNO HOME OF THE BASKETBALL HALL OF FAME June 29, 2012

Board of License Commissioners for the City of Springfield Peter Sygnator, Chairman 36 Court Street Springfield, MA 0103 Re: Late Night Regulation of Pouring Establishments Licensed Under MG.L. Chap. 138. Dear Commissioners: I am writing to you in follow up to the newly adopted regulations requiring a special permit for entertainment after 1 AM taking place at pouring establishments licensed under Mass. Gen. Law Chapter 138, and efforts to address the secondary effects of late night entertainment taking place at such establishments on the city as a whole, and the downtown area in particular. As indicated in the hearing held with regard to the regulations in December 2011, the City has been faced with challenges concerning the amount of crime in the City, and, in particular, the amount of late night crime in the downtown area and the financial expense for police resources required to be deployed to the Citys downtown area commonly known as the entertainment district where there is a significant number of pouring establishments licensed pursuant to Chapter 138. As the entertainment licensing authority, it was my hope that an earlier end to entertainment at such establishments would likely deter those individuals from entering the City and could potentially result in a reduction of arrests and diminish the cost of police resources are consumed during the late night hours by issues related to crowd control, investigations and arrests occurring

City of Springfield.36 Court Street Springfield, MA 01103-1687 (413) 787-6100

in the Entertainment District, and making the downtown area and its establishments a safer place to patronize for food, drink, and entertainment. Additionally, based on the violent nature of the criminal activity, it places both patrons of the establishments and police at an increased risk of injury and/or loss of life. The new Regulations were effective April 6, 2012. The Regulations have had a positive effect on various crime statistics in the downtown entertainment district since the implementation of the regulations. Specifically, a comparison of the time period from April 6, 2011 to May 6, 2011 (when the Special Late Night Permit was not in effect) and the same period for 2012 (after it went into effect) indicates a 22% decrease in the total number of calls for service by the Springfield Police Department in the Stearns Square area between Worthington Street and Bridge Street within the heart of the entertainment district; 401 versus 314. In addition, the overtime costs to the Police Department for that same area have gone down 10% from $16,136 down to $14, 574. A synopsis of crime statistics from all of the streets within the downtown entertainment district for a similar time frame, showing the hours from 1:00 A.M. to 6:30 A.M., broken down by the types of calls involving: 1) disturbance, 2) gun calls, 3) man down, and 4) shots fired, shows an overall decrease of 50%. A table of all arrests, broken down by type, for the same area and time period shows a total decrease of 44 arrests down to 14; a 68% decrease. I have included with this letter, information received from Commissioner Fitchet on this issue for your information. Recently, a number of lawsuits seeking court injunctions challenging my actions have been unsuccessful, and the various state and federal courts have upheld the regulatory actions that have been implemented. Based on this history, I would request that the Springfield License Commission consider additional measures to build on the efforts made to date. For example, I would request that the License Commission consider exercising its authority pursuant to Massachusetts General Laws, Chapter 138, section 12 to adjust the operating hours for licenses. Under that state law, the hours during which sales of such alcoholic beverages may be made by any licensee as aforesaid shall be fixed by the local licensing authorities either generally or specially for each licensee. This discretion applies to sales after 11 P.M. and 2:00 A.M. This change would require the licensing authority to hold a public hearing concerning the public need for such decrease; with a two week notice of the public hearing. Other jurisdictions have different hours, and regulations have also been imposed to prohibit re entry after 1:00 A.M. which may provide examples and experiences for your consideration.

I am requesting that the License Commission carry out its efforts with due course, in order to build on the efforts initiated with the hearing last December and which continue to this date. Very truly yours,

ayor

Affidavit of Police Commissioner William Fitchet with Exhibits Exhibit 10: Statistic comparison of the number of calls to the Police Department for 4/6/115/6/11 and 4/6/12 5/6/12

Exhibit 11: Overtime Costs to the Police Department

Exhibit 12: Synopsis of crime statistics from all streets within the downtown entertainment district
Exhibit 13: A taMe of all arrests broken down by type, area and time period

Comparison of the Two Tirneframes 2011 4/6/11-5/6/11 401 27 16,135 $ 2012 4/6/12-5/6/12 314 19 14,574 $ %Dff -22% -30% -.10%

CFS Arrests CT

All numbers for CFS and Arrests taken from SPD Crime View software.

,Ozi

/fr243
a

,rn

Comparison of the Two Timeframes 2011 416111-5/6111 401 27 16,135 $ 2012 4/6/12-5/6/12 314 19 14,574 $ %Diff -22% -30% -10%

LoT:

I.rrsts

I..:CFS[.

All numbers for CFS and Arrests taken from SPD CiimeWew software.

OZ

lflIt1b*

Synopsis of Entertainment IMstrict Statistics

This report will provide the statistics for select calls for service and ALL arrests that took place in the Entertaimnet District. The dat th frames used for both arrests and calls are April 7 May 5 for both 2011 & 2012 for comparison and the time frames used are from 1:00 AM 6:30AM for both years..

th 8

There has been overall a 50% Decrease in these calls from April 7 A1\4:
-

May

from 2011 2012 between the hours of 1:00 AM

6:30

1.) Disturbance 2) Gun Calls 3.) Man Down 4.) Shots Fired

The call comparison by year is below.

1111j
Disturbance Gun Calls Man Down Shots Fired
-

2011 3 1 0 4
8 4

2012 3 0 1 0

Difference 0 -1 1 -4
4

Percentage Na Change 100% Decrease 100% Increase 100% Decrease

-----____

Total

50% Decrease

1 E,tertaupiwnt DiJriet a4isfQ&nN1e t.iiW

Arrests for this aiea has decreased by 68% from 2011 2012 for the selected time frames and date range. ALL arrests that occurred in this district for these times and dates are displayed below.
2011 4 S 0 12 0 1 2012 0 3 4 1 0 Difference -4 -5 2 -8 1 -1 Percentage 100% Decrease 63% Decrease 100J increase 67% Decrease 100% Increase 100% Decrease Aggravated Assault Simple Assault Narcotic Violations DisorderlyQonduct Drunkenness Intimidation Receiving Stolen

fmpprty
Destruction offtpperty
OUI

Open Container Traffic Violation All Other

1 2 2 2 3 9 0 0 0 0 1 3 -1 2 -2 -2 -2 -6
-

100% Decrease 100% Decrease 100% Decrease 100% Decrease 67% Decrease 67% Decrease
gI

.
-I 44 14 Total

-30

68% Decrease