Neighbors Fed Up With Hookah Lounge In Fairfield

FAIRFIELD, CT — A group of Fairfield neighbors have had enough of the issues related to the Sky Hookah Lounge on Kings Highway and are urging officials, and fellow residents, to take action.

Cheryl Churchill, a member of the Kings Highway Neighborhood Association, says the neighborhood has endured numerous incidents for several years, but it “has grown to be such an abhorrent situation that it is affecting our quality of life.”

Sky Hookah Lounge, located at 689 Kings Highway, was established in 2009 and is unregulated by state or local laws. Patrons can bring their own alcohol and rent a hookah table and buy different flavors of tobacco. There are also weekly DJs, belly dancers and other events at the lounge, according to its website.

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Churchill says it’s “basically an after-hours club complete with loud music.”

“Patrons park in front of our houses, scream, fight, urinate in our yards, play extremely loud music and race their cars in front of our homes on a regular basis sometimes until 5 a.m.,” Churchill said in an email. “Police are now stationed there every weekend because it has gotten to be so troublesome. The patrons of this establishment also leave their trash, beer bottles and drug paraphernalia at the street corners where our children wait for their school buses. Much of the clientele is from other towns that come here after most bars close.

“I urge everyone in town to demand something be done. This is not just a neighborhood problem. It is taking much of the town's resources to keep this place of business under control. Please... help us keep our neighborhood and, in turn, our town a safe place.”

Members of the neighborhood association met this week with Deputy Police Chief Chris Lyddy, Police Chief Gary MacNamara, First Selectman Mike Tetreau, Assistant Zoning Director James Wendt and the town attorney, according to Churchill.

In the last two years, Fairfield Police have responded to more than 500 calls for service in connection to the hookah lounge, according to the Connecticut Post.

The Post reports that within the last 45 days there have been five instances where a motor vehicle stop has turned into a pursuit and in one instance police recovered a gun that was tossed from a car.

The owner of the lounge, Anwar Malas, was arrested March 10 and charged with disorderly conduct. He was released on a promise to appear in court on April 17, according to state judicial records.

Churchill said she sent a certified letter to the owner of the property, Tom Brennan, 10 days ago but she hasn’t received a response.

The neighborhood association is prepared to take legal action, if necessary.

Churchill told the Post that the group would be willing to compromise with the hookah lounge if it would at least close at the same time as bars.

Read more, including details on recent arrests and incidents related to the lounge, at the Connecticut Post here.

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