The police department has had their fill of trouble at Waid’s restaurant and nightclub, and has written to the state liquor control board, asking that the 12th & Jefferson business’s liquor license not be renewed.
The city says that Waid’s “has ignored the State’s liquor laws and is a significant danger to public safety.” The letter cites a number of liquor violations and other liquor-involved incidents over the past year, including:
- 12/17/2009 – A 19 year old woman crashed her car into a tree after drinking at Waid’s, with a blood alcohol content level of .20
- 1/21/2010 – A 19 year old woman was found drinking in public near Waid’s, and found that she has previously been drinking inside the restaurant
- 2/24/2009 – Waid’s patrons involved in a fight that included an assault of an officer
- 7/11/2009 – One Waid’s patron suffered serious injuries when a cinder block was thrown on his head during a fight
- 9/20/2009 – Another fight inside and outside the business
Previous incidents we’ve covered around Waid’s include a near-fatal shooting, a stabbing, a fight where a stolen firearm was recovered, and a fight and shooting two weeks ago.
Waid’s has also been the subject of complaints of nearby residents, with one resident two blocks away saying that the string of incidents made the area “worse than the South Bronx.”
According to Anne Radford, spokesperson for the Washington State Liquor Control Board, Waid’s liquor license renewal is currently being reviewed by the licensing division and a decision is expected within a couple of weeks. Both the city and the business will have several opportunities to appeal the outcome of that decision, and Waid’s would be issued a temporary permit until a final decision is made. That process could run out for several months while the appeals play out.
Maybe they should just leave the part about their being a lounge on their sign and forget the restaurant part…it doesn’t seem a place people are going to for food!
Mistamatic, it’s Haitian, not Italian. Tree needs to be trimmed. Waid sent a lotta aid to Haiti after the earthquake.
However, this place’s ‘customers’ and REALLY REALLY LOUD music have devastated the little neighborhood around it, that once was very cool and friendly. It’s a damn shame and I’m ever so grateful that I hadn’t bought a home there.
For those who think Waid’s is trouble, I’ve been living a few blocks east for 7 months (and my boyfriend for 18) and neither of us has ever noticed any problems. The music doesn’t even seem loud, even on fridays or saturdays when we walk by. Sometimes I wonder if they are even open because there’s so little noise. You can hardly say the business has “devastated” the neighborhood if people living in the neighborhood haven’t realized there’s been trouble.
I live a block and a half away from Waids. Things there have been quieter for the last year or so. Although I did hear the gunshots from the altercation out in front of Waids a few weeks ago – pretty unsettling. The relative quiet of the last few years came after a really pretty rough patch. It is my understanding that all of the homeowners of Barclay Court was basically driven out by the noise and violence brought to the area by Waids. Some sold their properties, while others turned their homes into rental properties. People who had lived on Barclay for 10 to 20 years or more left the area solely because of the impact of Waids. I’d call that devastation. Unfortunately yanking Waids liquor license isn’t going to bring back the neighborhood that was lost.
you are correct jess. to my knowledge, the last owner on Barclay recently left, choosing to rent her house out because the noise was so disturbing to her. it is also true that those owners sued the owner of the building that waid’s is in (who also owns the arco station, not the owner of Waid’s) over the dispute and the violations at the building. it is my understanding that the building is not properly soundproofed, making the noise much worse for the houses to the north of it across the alley. there also tends to be a lot of “activity” in the alley after hours, also causing noise and creating an unsafe feeling. most of the houses there now are rented to students, which is sad, as there were long term committed owners on that block that really cared about the neighborhood and making it better. students are great, but they don’t usually get involved in the neighborhood since they are there for such short periods of time. it would honestly just be great to see waid’s more in line with the law, especially around underage drinking, which i know has been an issue with the university and the students there. it is pretty good food and service and waid is super nice, but at some point, one has to take responsibility for all this violence, and make an effort to self-police late at night – bouncer? security guards?
Yes let’s clean all the “urban” places out of Seattle to solve the crime problem. Never mind the fights and drugs in Belltown. Seattleites want the best of urban living, but don’t want the urban too close too their home.
I don’t think people don’t want “urban” here. Have you seen the building that Waid’s is in? I don’t think it is unreasonable to ask that a nightclub have the proper insulation when it is next to residential houses…and to not serve underage kids. These things are just common sense good neighbor things.
Waid puts on fundraisers for many needy causes. He’s also a nice guy. Most bars have the same problems. It’s loud and busy because it’s a bar! People who don’t like noise should not live in the city. I think people would be more forgiving if it was a business that attracted less black people. You shouldn’t buy property by a college in he CD if you want to be surrounded by people from Redmond. I’ve lived in the CD, cap hill, p square, belltown, Wallingford, Magnolia etc. Living by Waid’s is no louder or more dangerous- it’s just less white. Get a grip people.
Unless you lived on Barclay Court you can’t comment on the noise. If you did live close to Waid’s you definitely would have heard the gunshots the other night.
I do not live on Barclay but I can say this – the folks who left that street were as diverse in background as the demographics of the Central Area. Here is an article summarizing the tension: http://www.seattlepi.com/paynter/305721_paynt02.html
Yes I’ve seen the building and have frequented it many times. Guess what happens when you live to next to a club? You hear noise!!! The issue the city has is not with the noise it’s with serving underage minors. Yes, I agree they need to get someone trained to look and ID’s, but the whole noise thing? Give me a break……
really is an important issue for the mental and physical health of residents.
Please, before you write, get your facts straight. None of these incidences mentioned by you regarding my establishment is true. Waids is a place of love. The neighbors problem has been resolved years ago because of my hard work and huge money investment putting into sound proofing the whole place. As far as fights , shootings and whatever it is you wrote…none of them has anything to do with WAIDS and I have proved it and i can prove it again and i will. Again, this place is dedicated to the community and to love and to oneness and it will not deviate from that. The way of life in America seems like LAW SUIT is the way to go…CHECK YOUR STUFF BEFORE YOU PUT YOUR NAME SCOTT! always love, waid
To “Resident,” who might want to own his/her thoughts by stating their name, the neighborhood has become infinitely cooler as a result of Waid’s. Two years ago, we went to Waid’s for New Year’s specifically because we wanted a great vibe and didn’t want to deal with the scores of loud drunken idiots one usually finds downtown. When we walked outside, we couldn’t even hear any noise just outside the door, much less by nearby homes. And that was on New Year’s, when people are typically rowdier. So imagine how much quieter the club usually would be.
And I would ask the SPD whether they are shutting down the liquor licenses for all of the other Seattle clubs whose customers have caused fights and accidents after they left the club. I know the SPD has more patrols in Belltown, but I have not heard of any Belltown clubs losing their licenses.
One of my friends had heard all the complaints about Waid’s from one of her friends, but was pleasantly surprised to discover how chill the club was when I took her there!
I can’t help but believe that there are people out there with an agenda that has little to do with noise.
Regarding the noise: I live across the back alley from Waid’s. It’s Sunday, almost 1 am, and this is the third night in a row that bass is booming through the walls and keeping me up. Waid, the “neighbours problem” has not been resolved. The facts are straight in my ears, rattling me awake 3-4 nights a week.
The place calls itself a restaurant, not a nightclub, and it’s zoned that way. Poor suckers who move in without Googling a 4-year history of neighbourhood disturbance first….