Burr Ridge Eyes Rules For Live Music At Bars

BURR RIDGE, IL — In January, a new Burr Ridge bar that had promised it would have no live music started planning otherwise. That apparently triggered a larger discussion at Village Hall.

Are We Live, a lounge owned by Capri Ristorante's Filippo "Gigi" Rovito, planned to have a musician perform weekly in January and February.

Before the village government approved the lounge last year, Rovito's representative told village officials the bar would feature no live entertainment. This was in response to noise concerns from neighbors of County Line Square, the site of Are We Live.

After Patch reported that Are We Live was poised to break its promise, the lounge canceled the singer's performances. It then sought a permit from the village to allow live entertainment. Shortly afterward, it pulled that request after the village apparently indicated it would reconsider its overall policy on live entertainment.

At Monday's Village Board meeting, Trustee Gun Franzese said the village needed to define live entertainment and decide where it would be allowed. His preference was that such performances be inside restaurants, not outdoors.

"I do enjoy live entertainment in the village," he said.

He said he did not like the idea of prohibiting live music in some restaurants and not others. He called for an even playing field.

The board voted unanimously to direct the Plan Commission to hold a hearing on regulations for live entertainment.

Trustees also asked the commission to review hours for restaurants. Under the village code, restaurants are allowed to be open at any point between 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. But exceptions have been made for 10 of the village's two dozen restaurants, officials said.

Trustee Russell Smith said it was important to get all restaurants on the same page.

"I don't know how we enforce it now. It's all over the board," he said.