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THE REVERE ADVOCATE – FRIDAY, MAY 28, 2021 Page 7 Antonia’s at the Beach ordered to roll back hours following COVID-19 violations By Adam Swift F ollowing an hour-long hearing last week, the Licensing Commission handed Antonia’s at the Beach a 30-day rollback of its hours for repeated violations of COVID-19 regulations. Commissioners weighed the impact of imposing a penalty on the 492 Revere Beach Boulevard restaurant and function room versus the possibility of endangering the jobs of the restaurant’s 25 employees. Antonia’s was also before the Licensing Commission last year for a violation of COVID-19 regulations when the facility held a birthday party for a family member of one of the restaurant employees. At issue with the latest hearing was a report from Director of Inspectional Services Michael Wells stating that there were two DJ and dance nights held at the restaurant in April and May violating COVID-19 restrictions. Those restrictions are set to end on May 29. Also at issue was a possible violation with the manager of record for Antonia’s not being on site at the restaurant. “The management issue is one thing, normally in and of itself, that would be something we could work with,” said Licensing Commission Chair Robert Selevitch. “But there is a situation there where it doesn’t seem like anyone is managing the place, and whoever is managing the place has no regard for the city, the inspectors, the regulations and the rules. So I think we have a signifi cant problem here that goes beyond who the manager on a piece of paper is.” Wells stated that there were several instances of a DJ on the premises with dancing over the past month. “When a city inspector goes into a building and says, “‘Hey, I see you are advertising a dance party. You can’t have this,’ and an hour later they have a dance party, that’s a little bit more than a mistake was made,” said Selevitch. J. Fernando Loaiza, the acting assistant manager at the restaurant, said he has been running the restaurant while the manager of record has largely been taking care of his sick mother over the past year. Loaiza said the DJ initially said he was going to host private parties in the function rooms, and that after the two incidents referred to at the licensing hearing, he would no longer be working with the DJ. “I told the DJ that this was not a nightclub; we need something to bring in dining, not dancing,” he said. “It was different than what he promised to me – that he would bring in his own parties – and we stopped it right away.” Licensing Commissioner Linda Guinasso pointed to the violation from the previous summer when the restaurant violated COVID-19 regulations and got off without a penalty. “I feel like you disrespected the inspectional services workers, the taxpayers and everyone else in this city,” said Guinasso. “You’ve been warned time and time again, and every time, you come up with another story. I just don’t think you have any respect for your license – that’s my opinion.” Licensing Commissioner Daniel Occena said he met with Loaiza and found him to be sincere and hardworking, but said he is still troubled by the reported violations at the restaurant. “It’s not a question of something bad happening, it’s a question of you following the rules,” said Occena. “That seems to be the issue. It’s not an issue of your character. You seem to be a very nice guy. Enough is enough; the rules are in place for everyone.” Councillor-at-Large George Rotondo said he respects the opinions and reports of Wells and the commissioners, but asked if there could be some kind of provisional penalty imposed rather than a loss of license. “I don’t want to put 25 people out of work,” said Rotondo. Wells noted that in addition to the hearings before the Licensing Commission, there have been several other violations at the restaurant. “They say they have learned their lesson, but I wonder if they are really learning their lesson,” he said. “They have taken a slap on the hand and they move forward and they do it again.” Wells said letting Antonia’s off the hook again would send a bad message to those 50 or more restaurants in the city that have strictly followed COVID-19 regulations over the past year and a half. Guinasso said she would personally like to see a seven-day license suspension for the restaurant, but moved forward with a motion to roll back the closing time of Antonia’s from 2 a.m. to 11 p.m. for approximately 30 days until the next commission meeting in June. Selevitch and Occena agreed to the motion. At the next meeting, the commission can consider if it wants to reinstate the 2 a.m. closing time for Antonia’s. 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