The city, which has long struggled with how control alcohol-related crime while encouraging a vital Downtown nightlife, is at a defining moment.

With nearly half the seats on its powerful Alcohol License Review Committee coming vacant -- three of the more liberal voting members are leaving -- Mayor Dave Cieslewicz now has a chance to reshape the committee.

The mayor will be replacing chairwoman Stephanie Rearick, Brian Benford and Jose Sentmanat at time when Downtown residents have become increasingly outspoken about public safety.

Some committee members have already been pushing for stricter regulation. During his first year on the committee, Ald. Michael Schumacher has vocally opposed bartender licenses for those with substance abuse offenses and has pushed to discipline places that break rules.

Schumacher, elected to his first term on the City Council last year, also hopes to redo the discipline system for license-holders, create new beer garden restrictions and more.

The committee will soon conduct the city 's first revocation hearing against an establishment accused of morphing from a restaurant to tavern, by increasing sales of liquor over food.

Neighborhood speaks up

Meanwhile, in the past year, Capitol Neighborhoods Inc. led fights to block a proposed bar on the Capitol Square and another on State Street.

In late January, the neighborhood organization demanded higher drink prices, fewer bars and a crackdown on underage drinking to reduce fights, threatening behavior and property damage.

Cieslewicz has been listening. He 's been increasingly sensitive to complaints about crime, including assaults Downtown and violence after bar time on King Street from 2004 through 2006.

"I think it 's time to re-emphasize responsibility on the part of owners, " he said. "We 're looking to hit that sweet spot between a vibrant entertainment district and a responsible industry. "

Liberalizing the ALRC

As a mayoral candidate in 2003, Cieslewicz championed more nightlife, saying the ALRC should "loosen up a little bit. "

For a decade, Ald. Tim Bruer, 14th District, had led the ALRC with a hands-on, no-nonsense approach to regulation.

Some dubbed the era the "War on Fun. "

Under Bruer, the ALRC adopted a points-based system to discipline businesses with alcohol-related offenses, and began imposing "voluntary " license conditions, such as limited hours of operation and security requirements.

In 2000, pressure mounted as UW-Madison grew more worried about student binge drinking and became more active on license applications near campus.

"It was anti-business, " Madison-Dane County Tavern League 's Barb Mercer said of the time. "It was nasty. It was ugly. "

In 2002, Bruer and university officials encouraged a voluntary deal by 20 bars to ban drink specials on weekend nights, which inspired a 2004 lawsuit on behalf of students claiming a price-fixing conspiracy. Bar owners dropped the ban, but the lawsuit has moved to the state Supreme Court.

After Cieslewicz 's election, he replaced Bruer and added musicians and progressives to the licensing committee. The mayor sought to create a more vibrant entertainment scene that appealed to young professionals.

"I was hearing from people (that) the ALRC was becoming too strict, " Cieslewicz said. "We sent a very strong signal. We want to encourage eclectic music venues. "

Soon, the High Noon Saloon, Brass Ring Bar and Restaurant and Brink Lounge -- hot spots offering music and entertainment -- filled the old Buy & Sell shop building at 701 E. Washington Ave.

"There was almost no new license that was refused, " said Rick Petri, a former assistant city attorney.

Licenses proliferate

Between 1997 and 2006, the number of licenses Downtown increased by 125 percent to nearly 130. There are now 364 licenses citywide.

But the ALRC sometimes struggled with discipline, such with the former Club Majestic, which was tied to repeat bar-time violence on King Street from 2004 through 2006. The city attorney and police stepped in to resolve that problem.

Rearick, appointed in October 2002 and chairwoman since May 2006, said there were many positive changes.

The licensing committee, she said, became less centered on one person, more transparent and developed clearly defined policies.

The committee nixed the city 's archaic cabaret license, which regulated dancing in establishments, and replaced it with two new licenses. One lets those under 21 attend shows where liquor is being served if they wear a wrist band and there 's extra security.

The new licenses, which opened doors to music and performances for many, "are one of the coolest things about (Rearick 's) legacy, " said City Council President Mike Verveer, who represents the core Downtown and was named to the committee in early 2005.

Pendulum swinging back?

Cieslewicz, pressured to confront student binge drinking and alcohol-fueled crime Downtown, named the city 's first, full-time alcohol policy coordinator in 2005.

Last fall, the committee backed plan to cap the number of bars Downtown.

Schumacher is now pushing the city 's first license revocation hearing for a restaurant that doesn 't sell enough food to be classified a restaurant -- Quinton 's Bar & Deli, 319 W. Gorham St. -- and pursing discipline against Good Times, neighborhood bar at 57 S. Stoughton Road that has been a source of troubles.

"We 're not talking about prohibition, " he said. "(But) alcohol is not an ordinary commodity. We 're talking about a commodity that can raise to the level of being a deadly weapon, a commodity that can lead to inappropriate behavior and leave people vulnerable. "

Schumacher 's tenacity has caused some tensions, like an exchange with Sentmanat over a bartender license application last week. "With the level of hyperbole, you 'd think we were the parole board at San Quentin, " Sentmanat said.

As she leaves, Rearick is worried the mayor will push the regulatory pendulum back too far, at the expense of clubs and venues.

Cieslewicz declined to say who he 'll appoint when he fills vacancies this spring, but he stressed he wants to balance a desire for a dynamic entertainment district with having more people live and work Downtown.

"If there was a war on fun, ' we ended it. That 's good, " he said. "But we also have to make sure it 's a safe scene. You can 't have fun in an environment when you don 't feel safe. "

THE ALRC: 

WHO VOTES?

The nonvoting seats on the committee are representatives from the Dane County Tavern League, Madison police, UW-Madison, city attorney and city alcohol policy coordinator. All voting members are nominated by the mayor and approved by the City Council.

ALRC voting  members:   

Ald. Michael Schumacher, 18th District, a consulting business owner   

City Council President Michael Verveer, 4th District, an assistant Dane County district attorney   

John McNamara, accounts manager for Union Taxi Cab   

David Hart, assistant state attorney general

Voting members leaving the committee:   

Brian Benford   

Jose Sentmanat, aide to Dane County Executive Kathleen Falk   

Chairwoman Stephanie Rearick, owner, Mother Fool  's Coffee House

ALRC nonvoting members:   

Tammy Peters, city clerk's office   

Marsh Shapiro, Dane County Tavern League designee, owner of Nitty Gritty Restaurant and Bar   

Madison Police Lt. Carl Gloede   

Steve Brist, assistant city attorney   

Dawn Crim, UW-Madison chancellor designee   

Katherine Plominski, Madison alcohol policy coordinator