On Thursday, March 6, officials from the Vermont Department of Liquor Control (DLC) and the Colchester Police Department entered Unwinders bar located on Vt. route 15. Approxiametly 70 customers were told to form a line and present their IDs for inspection. Three individuals were found to have been using fakes, says Gail Stypick, owner of Unwinders.
Placing the blame
Stypick says she is enraged about the incident and feels she is being targeted.
"All I know is that if they’re doing this to me, they better be doing it to all the other bars,” Stypick says.
The DLC told Stypick that they have received several complaints of underage drinking from the Colchester Police Department and St. Michael’s Security, she says.
The Colchester Police Department declined to comment, and the DLC was unable to be reached.
Peter Soons, director of Safety and Security, denies these charges, saying Campus Security has made no such claims to the DLC.
“It’s an off-campus establishment, Soons says. “We have to respect her desire and ability to do business.”
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Unwinders is a popular place for St. Michael's students to gather on evenings.There is controversy surrounding whether minors using fake IDs had been enjoying alcohol inside. (Photo by Kaitlin Couillard) |
An official at the DLC confirmed that at no point has a member of Security sent a complaint to them concerning Unwinders, Soons says. Security did assist a fight two weeks ago in the business’ parking lot, he says.
The individuals involved in the fight had been drinking, but had not been served alcohol at her bar, Stypick says.
“We’re interested in the safety of our students,” Soons says. “If we are aware or requested to assist concerning our students, we will do so.”
Although St. Michael’s Security has no jurisdiction over Unwinders, it is not hard to see how problems could evolve, Soons says.
“The reality is that two-thirds of the campus population is underage,” he says.
When Stypick opened the bar on Jan. 2, she was not expecting to be catering to such a high number of college-aged students, but she is doing her job to ensure that those underage are not being served, she says.
“I’ve done everything I’m supposed to do,” Stypick says. “You know, there’s someone at the door who checks IDs in the evenings, and they’re not allowed in here if they’re under 21. We even have one bartender, she’s a little pit-bull, and she’ll even go into the bathroom and make sure there’s not underage kids in there.”
Passing the test
The actions of the DLC and police officers were unfair and extreme, Stypick says.
“They kept those kids in the back room for a half-hour, even after they knew that they were 21, which is completely over the top,” she says. “I think they were looking to find a lot of underage kids here and there weren’t. We don’t have underage kids here.”
Junior Molly Dever, 21, says otherwise.
“I know for a fact that a lot of them were sophomores because I know them,” Dever says.
She and other students were lined up in a hall that connected the front and the back of the bar, and told to hand over their IDs for inspection, Dever says. After their ID was checked, they were told to remain in the backroom until the officials had finished with everyone, she says.
“I know there was a girl hiding in the bathroom,” Dever says.
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Molly Dever holds her passport that officals inspected on Thursday, March 6 at Unwinders. She was there to celebrate her 21st birthday. |
She says, however, that she has not heard rumors claiming the bar is easy for underage drinkers to enter.
“Any bar is going to have people trying to get in with fake IDs, so why target this one more than others?” Dever says. "If they have someone checking IDs at the door, why do you have to come in and check everyone’s ID, and plus it hurts business because it stops customers from being served.
Because it is Stypick’s establishment, it is her responsibility to make sure the bouncer is accurately checking the IDs, he says.
Doing the job
Underage drinking at Unwinders should not be such a big deal, senior Mark Consigli, 22, says.
“We’re a bunch of college kids, and if we can get away with it then we should get away with it,” he says. “I mean we walk home anyway.”
The officials declared that no one was allowed to order drinks until all IDs had been checked, Consigli says. He and his friends did not line up, but rather placed their IDs on the table top and continued what they were doing, he says.
There were more than three underage individuals at Unwinders that night, Consigli says.
“It’s certainly not [the bar’s] fault if someone gives them a real ID,” he says. “It’s unfortunate the situation [the bar] is in. I mean we love going there.”
Despite this, he enjoys having his friends go out with him even if they are not of age, he says.
“I’m never going to tell one of my friends not to go out if they’re not 21,” Consigli says. “They just need to make a greater effort to check the IDs at the door.”
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This sign on the front door of Unwinders suggests that anyone not of legal drinking age: "Stop,Do not enter, and U turn." |
Stypick denies that underage people are being served at her bar, and says if they are underage, she does not want them there.
“[The police] say 'to look at the pictures better,' but you know what, if you look at my ID it looks nothing like me,” she says.
She is frustrated that incidents such as this will be counted against her, Stypick says.
“If [the visits of officials] keep up, I’m going to make a complaint,” Stypick says. “It’s just not fair that I’m being targeted.”