PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The Licensing Board has started a six-month timer before revoking the Tavern At The A's liquor license.

Operators of the General Electric Athletic Golf Course have a new tenant and liquor license lined up to reopen the tavern, but must settle the existing one first. The restaurant has been shuttered since last summer, and the former operator has not surrendered the seven-day restaurant license.

The licensee, Hailey Satrape, was on the agenda but did not appear.

"We've had absolutely no luck trying to transfer the Satrape license. We've since found out that it appears that she has not filed any of the required tax returns, nor does she have, apparently, any of the information necessary to file any of the tax returns," attorney Bill Martin said.

"So we have effectively exhausted all possible avenues of accomplishing what we would need to accomplish with the (Alcoholic Beverages Control Commission) to transfer that license."

The GEAA has negotiated a liquor license transfer with the former House of Seasoning for the Crane Avenue restaurant and a lease with the former operator of the Skyline Country Club.

"The only caveat there would be that the existing license, unfortunately, would have to be revoked and effectively surrendered," Martin said.

"Which puts us in the situation where, because of Pittsfield quotas, that's obviously been problematic, but we're in a situation where that license is, for all practical purposes, dead. It can never be revived."

Chairman Thomas Campoli pointed out that licensees are given six months before being revoked, and it would be a much faster process if it were surrendered. He was told that Satrape went from being cooperative to non-responsive but has not been overtly hostile.

Campoli said if the physical liquor license with a notarized memo is turned in, the city will be down one, but the GEAA could get a license transfer.

A.H. Satrape Inc. received a notice to appear before the Licensing Board by certified mail.

"So that notice has gone out and at the time we scheduled this, it was to see what she had in mind in terms of operation of the business, because she hasn't been operating since August, and all of this came out at that November meeting that we had with GEAA," Campoli explained.

The board voted to notify the licensee that if she doesn't operate the restaurant or cancel the license in six months, it will be revoked.

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