Bars add a new twist to the suburban mix

As hip-hop music pounded out of speakers, three bouncers wearing Secret Service-style earpieces worked over the IDs at the front door of Majors Sports Cafe in Blaine on a recent Friday night. The bar's general manager stood watch, too.

Then came trouble. A bouncer saw a young man stumbling his way toward Majors' front door. Denied entry, the man started yelling; general manager Paul McNiff stepped in, trying unsuccessfully to calm him down.

Backup arrived — another bouncer, bigger than anyone at the bar and with a neck as thick as a pro wrestler's. After a quick exchange of words, the man turned and left.

The confrontation was one sign of a new security crackdown at suburban bars, which have seen an increase in alcohol-related disturbances and violence. Throughout the metro area, suburban police departments and city councils are trying to keep control by stepping up enforcement and passing new ordinances.

This summer police responded to a brawl at Majors around closing time that reportedly involved 20 to 25 people. Last December, a bouncer at Time Out Restaurant & Sports Bar in Blaine was fatally stabbed while trying to break up a fight.

Blaine has banned drink specials after 10 p.m. and now requires employees who sell or serve liquor to undergo training, among other measures.

Anoka amended its laws last month after a shift from 1 a.m. to 2 a.m. bar closings increased the number of police calls downtown. This summer, two police officers were specifically assigned to patrol a two-block area of downtown Anoka that has four restaurants and bars.

"We have always certainly understood the relationship between bad behavior and drinking," Blaine Police Chief Dave Johnson said. "But the high level of incidents we experienced … really indicated to the City Council that they needed to make some shifts in how we allow business to be done."

There are 23 establishments in Blaine that serve liquor, compared with only five about 10 years ago, Johnson said.

Growth leads to troubles

In Anoka, there were 14 misdemeanor assaults downtown in 2005 compared with 30 in 2006. There were 13 this summer, according to police, who cited stepped-up patrols for contributing to a decrease.

Debbie Petersen , owner of Anoka's Jackson Street Bar and Grill, said the area began booming with customers a little over a year ago, doubling her weekend profits.

But with the profits came more responsibility. Petersen's husband started spending more time at the restaurant on weekend nights and, for the first time ever, they posted two employees at the front door and a bouncer inside.

A man in his 20s was slashed in the neck with a knife by another man in downtown Anoka this summer, Police Chief Philip Johanson said. The victim was not seriously injured.

"We're just going to have a little more of a presence downtown," Johanson said. "Downtown is going to continue to grow and be a destination."

Maple Grove authorities recently conducted compliance checks and found that 12 of their approximately 36 establishments that serve alcohol sold it to a minor.

"I was very upset," Steffenson said. "This was significantly higher than we've had before."

"It's increased demands on the police department," Steffenson said. "It wasn't all that long ago that if you wanted to eat, you had to leave Maple Grove to do that."

West St. Paul's troubles

Rewriting laws and adding extra patrols helps keep things under control. But keeping disturbances to a minimum, authorities said, starts with establishment owners and managers.

In West St. Paul, authorities respond to trouble by sitting down with bar owners and working out an "abatement plan" that outlines steps to rectify problems in hopes that it will stave off the need for legal action.

Such action successfully addressed issues at Tapper's Pub a year ago when narcotics and loud patrons became a problem, West St. Paul Mayor John Zanmiller said. It got so bad neighbors started a website to track the issues.

The city is currently working out issues with another establishment, Boulevard Bar and Grille.

"We're big believers in [businesses]," Zanmiller said. "We want people to be able to continue operating."

Calming things at Time Out

Authorities don't expect a decline in bar activity anytime soon, with suburbs growing in population or absorbing business from their city neighbors.

Bar owners say that they are taking proactive steps to ensure safety but that it can be difficult to recover after taking a hit.

"It has hurt our business tremendously," he said.

On a recent, low-key Friday night at Time Out, a few dozen young people sat and talked in groups. Others danced.

In what Bakhtiari describes as a "proactive" decision earlier this year, his bar began hiring two private security guards on its busiest night, Thursday, which is ladies' night.

In addition to Time Out's regular bouncers, the added security guards leave their car parked near the front door and patrol inside — tasers and handcuffs hanging from their belts.

"I want people to just come in, have a few drinks, dance, enjoy themselves and then drive home safe," Bakhtiari said. "That's all we want as a business."