Fort Worth bar owner says he’ll continue to open amid COVID despite governor’s order
Despite being handed citations and knowing that his liquor license could be revoked, Chris Polone, owner of the Rail Club Live in Fort Worth, says he will continue to open his bar and keep selling alcohol.
After being closed for most of the year during the coronavirus pandemic, income is down and bills are up. So Polone and some other bar owners across the state opened up for good on Saturday as part of the movement dubbed Come and Take It, he said.
Polone along with other bar owners also opened a month ago for one day during Freedom Fest, an event that was meant to show that bars could open safely just like restaurants and how owners believed Gov. Greg Abbott’s June 26 executive order that shut down bars was unfair. The Fort Worth bar owner had his liquor license suspended about a month ago.
On Monday, Polone called Come and Take It a success. He said he opened up with a 25% occupancy limit, enforced mask-wearing, and had hand sanitizing stations.
On Saturday, Polone said, Fort Worth code compliance officials didn’t issue him a citation. Instead they went over guidelines and allowed him to continue. But hours later, he was left confused when he got a call from the Code Compliance Department asking him to shut down. He believes the turnaround was because of the Texas Alcohol Beverage Commission agents who showed up afterward and put pressure on the city.
The Code Compliance Department did not immediately provide a comment on the situation.
In a Facebook video posted to the bar’s page, a TABC agent tries to give Polone paperwork and Polone declines, saying that he wouldn’t sign anything and that his lawyers would take a look at it.
Polone said he didn’t read the paperwork left by the agents because he’ll have his lawyers handle that. He said it was interesting that the bar was selling alcohol but the agents did nothing to try and stop him.
TABC spokesperson Chris Porter said that over the weekend the commission conducted 1,100 inspections, finding 16 violations. Agents are working on serving suspensions. Porter didn’t have the exact names of those suspended in Tarrant County, but said five of the suspensions are being served to bars in North Texas.
Porter added that a second offense is a 60-day suspension and owners continuing to violate the governor’s order could face cancellation of their liquor license.
But that isn’t going to stop Polone, he said.
On Monday, hours before Polone opened again, Fort Worth officials came to his bar and issued a citation ordering him to not open, he said. Polone believes he could come up to his bar one of these days and find a lock on the door.
On Monday, he also had a hearing to try to reinstate his liquor license that was suspended in July. He said he doesn’t believe it will be reinstated as he’s still defying Abbott’s order.
He believes he’s being made an example of and when it’s all done, Polone said, he’ll probably have his license revoked.
“The best way to destroy a movement is to cut off the head,” he said.
