Norfolk's rush on Palace ruling

Perhaps Kenny Bullock is qualified to serve as a manager for his restaurant, The Palace on Plume Street.

But the people of Norfolk don't know that, because the City Council approved his request to serve as manager of the club without a single word of public discussion.

Less than five months ago, Vice Mayor Anthony Burfoot called for the club to be shut down after an altercation that started there led to a fatal shootout on Interstate 264.

The violence followed a series of infractions at the club - including overcrowding and a lewd act when a couple was observed having sex inside the restaurant - similar to those that led the city to revoke a blanket liquor license for clubs at Waterside two years ago and eventually to shut down two bars in the venue.

A lawyer in the city attorney's office said Bullock had been serving as a manager for nearly a year in violation of the club's city permit. Bullock, who owns the building that houses the Palace, was convicted 15 years ago of possession with intent to distribute drugs. A Maryland state trooper found 21 pounds of cocaine, cash and ammunition in Bullock's car.

Compare that to Waterside clubs Have a Nice Day Cafe and Bar Norfolk, circa August 2009. The city revoked a blanket liquor license that covered all establishments in the city-owned Waterside, pointing to violations that included serving alcohol to minors, fire code infractions and, tellingly, hiring a felon as an ABC manager.

In March of that year, a man was fatally shot and another seriously wounded in the Waterside parking garage following an altercation. The city shut down Have a Nice Day Cafe and Bar Norfolk when they continued to serve alcohol without the city permit. A judge decided last week that Norfolk had acted legally.

Public outcry over heavy-handedness at Waterside prompted the city to question its procedures in dealing with troublesome clubs. Now, the council is supposed to be briefed at least a week in advance of controversial license applications.

That didn't happen. Documents provided to the council about The Palace on Plume contained no reference to opposition to the permit from the city's own lawyers and didn't refer to letters of opposition to the state's Alcoholic Beverage Control Board - from the police department and commonwealth's attorney's office.

Despite that previous call for greater openness, and despite Burfoot's late-summer demand that the club be shuttered, the City Council voted to approve the permit for the Palace without any discussion.

Councilman Paul R. Riddick said a belief in second chances prompted his support for Bullock's permit request. Those who have served their time should be allowed a chance to succeed, and by many measures Bullock has. Bullock founded two businesses after his 2001 release from prison and was granted restoration of his legal rights.

But two years ago, other bars with similar histories of trouble were penalized for offering that second chance.

Next month the state's ABC Board will hold a public hearing before determining whether Bullock should be allowed to serve as a club ABC manager. The board will consider, in an open hearing, Bullock's conviction as well as the objections to his service.

Norfolk's city council owed its residents a similar public discussion.