BY MICHAEL ACKER
Staff Writer
Thomas V. Pollando SAYREVILLE – A task force is being formed to look at ways of cracking down on the continuing incidents of violence and criminal activity at borough nightclubs.
Council President Thomas V. Pollando announced plans for the creation of a task force at Monday’s council meeting. The group would be charged with studying the recent string of club-related violence and how it can be curtailed.
Councilmen Dennis Grobelny and Daniel Buchanan were named as co-chairmen of the task force.
“We just want to make sure that the security measures that clubs have are uniform,” Pollando said. “If one club is doing better than another, then we should get the same conditions throughout.”
Violent instances that resulted in police action have occurred at several borough clubs over the past year. The most recent was at Club Abyss, Route 35, in the early hours of April 29 when a melee broke out in the parking lot involving at least 100 people.
Police from four local municipalities were called to assist Sayreville officers, who made six arrests as they struggled to disperse the crowd.
Police made three arrests at the same club in 2006 when called to the scene for a riot in which two people were stabbed.
In recent months, police have been called repeatedly to the Colosseum nightclub, also on Route 35. There were three incidents there during November and December, including the Nov. 22 shooting of a Shrewsbury man, and a fracas involving about 80 people in the parking lot on Dec. 28. In February, a Staten Island man was arrested on charges he assaulted two bouncers in the parking lot.
Also in February, a fight involving up to 30 people, some with baseball bats, prompted numerous police officers to respond to Bourbon Street, an adult entertainment club on Route 9. All Sayreville police units, as well as three from South Amboy and eight from Old Bridge were dispatched to the bar, but the perpetrators had fled the scene by the time of their arrival.
Grobelny and Buchanan met with Police Chief Edward Szkodny, Lt. Michael Burns and Lt. Timothy Brennan regarding club violence and security measures that can be taken at clubs that require repeated police action.
“The goal is to look at how the clubs operate, their security measures, how the patrons exit, [the venue’s] parking …,” Pollando said
Pollando said the task force will evaluate issues that have become problematic for law enforcement with incidents such as large fights that occur at the clubs, including the attire of club security. Police reported that Club Abyss security were not easy to identify in the midst of the violent crowd during the latest incident at that club.
The specific colors that security personnel wear are a concern.
“They may be gang colors, they may be red or yellow. We need to be cautious in case there is an issue,” Pollando said.
The council president said he wants the borough to take preventive action and respond quickly to problems when they occur. He added that the council does not want to put anyone out of business.
“We want to protect our residents and the people that come to these clubs,” Pollando said.
The all-Democrat council and Republican Mayor Kennedy O’Brien have been at odds over how to handle the club violence. O’Brien proposed an ordinance to institute a “three strikes” policy on the nightclubs.
Pollando has been a vocal critic of the policy, stating earlier that the problem should be addressed informally with owners of the establishments. He said the governing body supports the proposal for a task force.
“The chief welcomed it, the council welcomed it,” Pollando said. “I know that the mayor’s philosophy is three strikes and you’re out. As far as I am concerned, I am not willing to give anybody three strikes.”