Club plan not as tough as Nickels'

A Seattle City Council committee approved new rules for clubs and bars Thursday, but has yet to act on Mayor Greg Nickels' request that he be granted authority to close clubs he deems troublemakers.

Still, that idea is not dead yet.

Nickels and some neighborhood activists have asked the council to require such venues to obtain special business licenses and comply with noise, litter and anti-violence standards in and around their businesses. If they fail to comply, the mayor's office could suspend their licenses.

"The license is one element in a slew of things that can help the city tackle these public-safety issues," Pioneer Square activist Laine Ross said Wednesday of her opposition to the package approved Thursday. "We'd rather see no legislation go out of committee ... versus legislation that doesn't really have any teeth."

But some bar and club owners say it's too sweeping a requirement and could hurt their industry.

"It could put an air of uncertainty for these businesses, and it will really limit people's interest in investing in new music venues," said Tim Hatley, lobbyist for the Seattle Nightlife and Music Association.

"We don't think it's necessary," Hatley added. "We think that the package (passed Thursday) will really do a lot to address the issues. We should really start there and just kind of move on."

Both sides have been intensely lobbying the council in recent weeks. Councilwoman Sally Clark, who is chairwoman of the Economic Development and Neighborhoods Committee, said a majority of council members did not support the idea.

On Thursday, Councilwoman Jan Drago asked council staffers to draft a narrower license proposal for consideration Aug. 16. "That piece deserves discussion," Drago said.

The committee also plans to discuss at that meeting a measure aiming to strengthen the city's rules against excessive noise.

Meanwhile, the measure approved Thursday is expected to go to the full council Aug. 13. Many of its provisions are similar to elements of Nickels' proposal. The package would:

Require clubs and bars to submit a safety plan to the city. Failure to do so could result in a fine, although the specific plans would not be subject to city approval.

Create a nine-member night-life advisory board representing neighborhoods and the industry to evaluate night-life regulations and review safety plans.

Add violations of building occupancy limits to a list of problems that would enable the city to legally go after a business as a public nuisance.

Ask the mayor to hire at least four staffers to help enforce rules meant to keep clubs and bars from being rowdy, dangerous and bad neighbors. That includes at least two city employees to enforce the noise code at night -- and perhaps to monitor adherence to litter and fire codes. The council also wants Nickels to hire a night-life regulatory coordinator and an administrative coordinator to assist the advisory board.

Ask the mayor to direct an interdepartmental team of city staffers to occasionally conduct random inspections of various clubs.