Arlington Heights karaoke bar wants liquor license back
An Arlington Heights karaoke restaurant that lost its liquor license last year wants to get it back, but some trustees say they won't support it.
The owner of The Music Box, which formerly operated as Ding Dong Dang at 224 E. Golf Road, said the business has changed its name and cleared up issues concerning a previous owner who had been convicted of prostitution, but Arlington Heights trustees still have questions about if the business should be trusted with a liquor license again.
Owner Song Han presented her request to the Arlington Heights village board committee of the whole on Monday night, but, because of several trustees had more questions that went beyond the time restraints of the meeting, the hearing was continued to July 1.
Ding Dong Dang's liquor license was not renewed in May 2012 after violations stemming from incorrect paperwork and improperly obscured windows in the karaoke room.
A former owner and Han's stepsister, Myeong Lim, was arrested on two separate charges of prostitution while working as a masseuse in Buffalo Grove in 2010 and 2011, said Arlington Heights Police Officer William Kirby.
Since the nonrenewal last year, Han said she has dissolved any partnership with Lim and is the sole owner of the company, which is now operating as The Music Box.
Han, through an interpreter, said she was requesting another liquor license on Monday because her business has suffered and she has had to fire two employees. For the past year The Music Box has been operating as a bring your own alcohol establishment.
Trustee Thomas Glasgow said he was concerned about Lim continuing to be involved with the restaurant or taking over in the future without the village knowing because her name was on a previous contract.
“I have some serious questions about the credibility and honesty of the petitioner,” Glasgow said. “A liquor license is a privilege not a right.”
Other trustees said they had questions about how Han has changed her establishment to address the village's concerns from last year and will consider her explanations before voting on a liquor license early next month.