Two MainStrasse bars under fire for rowdy St. Patrick's Day parties

COVINGTON, Ky. - The rowdy St. Patrick's Day crowd in MainStrasse last weekend resulted in a serious assault, unruly behavior, and piles of trash left for residents to pick up.

The city of Covington sys that's not acceptable.

Cock and Bull English Pub and Pachinko's were apologetic Thursday morning after their advertised St. Patrick's Day parties drew a larger than expected crowd.

"The meeting was just very positive. Everybody was there to come up with a solution, everybody recognized the problems, and they were apologetic towards the neighbors," said MainStrasse Village Association Executive Director Kim Wolf.

Problem solving and planning was the theme at the meeting between Covington City Solicitor Frank Warnock, Police Chief Lee Russo, the MainStrasse Village Association, and the two bars after the annual drinking holiday caused a mess for MainStrasse.

"Down here in MainStrasse Village, we get a great crowd, but this year I think being on a Saturday, and it was great weather, a lot of factors just brought it. We were expecting a lot of people, but it was even more than what we expected," said Wolf.

The event wasn't sponsored by the MSVA, but Wolf attended to help problem solve for next year.

Warnock said litter, cleanup, safety, and appointing a point person in charge of events were all discussed.

He also said the city needs to do a better job of enforcing its own laws, and a plan is already being put into place for next year.

The MSVA is helping with that plan.

"The things that would change for next year would be some additional security, and a wider range of cleanup, and to get the cleanup done a little earlier, they need to get on that at the end of the night," said Wolf.

Cock and Bull English Pub wouldn't comment on how the bar will move forward after the meeting. A representative for Pachinko's wasn't reachable.

City Commissioner Shawn Masters said he's glad the meeting went well. He added the city should consider taking away privileges or fining businesses that are chronic offenders. Masters said those privileges could include revoking 2:30 a.m. liquor licenses and outdoor dining permits.

"We should all be working to set a higher standard for how we deal with the appearance of a major destination for our region," said Masters.