The city of Madison may not renew the Red Rooster bar’s liquor license, according to the Wisconsin State Journal. The news comes six months after the establishment’s bar manager allegedly caused a three-vehicle crash at the intersection of North Stoughton Road and Highway 30, killing a 37-year-old man, after drinking while at work.
The City Council on Tuesday will consider the recommendation of Madison’s Alcohol License Review Committee, which last Thursday voted 3-1 in favor of license nonrenewal.
Assistant City Attorney Jennifer Zilavy in a 10-page complaint dated May 22 described alleged instances of mismanagement and overserving at the far east side bar on Nov. 27 and Dec. 6-7 of 2024. Timothy Payne, who owns Red Rooster, denied claims that police called for a disturbance on Nov. 27 found no staff on site with an operator’s license, but he admitted to the December events, which included staff and two patrons drinking at the bar past 2:30 a.m.
Nicholas Nesthus, the bar’s manager, consumed eight shots of alcohol and multiple other drinks between the evening of Dec. 6 and early Dec. 7, according to video evidence. After leaving the bar just before 4 a.m., Nesthus allegedly ran a red light and crashed into two vehicles, killing Lodi resident Mathew Jopke. Nesthus was subsequently arrested and charged with drunken-driving homicide and second-degree recklessly endangering safety.
Payne, one of the Red Rooster’s founders and its current owner, said at last Thursday’s committee meeting, “It doesn’t represent a pattern. I’m there every day. I’ve been there every day for four years, and I was sick this day, and I went home early. And somebody died.”
Madison has revoked or denied renewal of liquor licenses in the past, but it is an unusual occurrence.
