Nightspot, eatery get new lease

The new owners are focusing on their restaurant; there won't be teen nights.
By JEANNE STARMACK
VINDICATOR STAFF WRITER
AUSTINTOWN -- A new nightclub and restaurant will open Friday in what used to be a troubled spot in the Wedgewood Plaza on Raccoon Road.
Farenheit Entertainment Inc., based in Austintown, is opening a casual-dining restaurant, The Wedgewood Grill, and a nightspot called The Wedge.
The location, 1743 S. Raccoon Road, was at one time The Mill nightclub, which closed in November 2002, and the Teen Scene, a club for the under-18 crowd that closed in December 2004.
It's going to be different this time around, said Tom Baclawski, marketing manager for The Wedgewood Entertainment Center.
The Mill and Teen Scene had their share of problems, with police called out to break up fights in the parking lot. Neighbors complained of noise and other nuisances.
Police answered 173 calls about the club between November 2001 and November 2002, according to Vindicator files. Night Clubs of Ohio Inc., which owned The Mill, was evicted from the Wedgewood Plaza in 2003 because of failing to pay rent.
When the club was the Teen Scene, fights broke out one night in August 2004 while 650-700 people were in the parking lot. Other police departments were called in to help Austintown.
Local promoter Corey Ward took over the lease then, and in September 2004, he announced he would continue teen nights and work with neighbors to address their concerns.
He said he wanted to get a liquor license and eventually open a club for adults. But in November 2004, police were again called when around 500 teens wouldn't leave the parking lot. Fights broke out.
Change of hands
Baclawski said new owners won't repeat the problems of the past. Ward sold the lease in December 2004 to Farenheit Entertainment, Baclawski said, which has been working hard for 14 months remodeling and getting ready to open. The corporation has a new liquor permit.
The business will focus heavily on the restaurant, he said, which will feature an American menu with some Mexican dishes, and it also will be a gathering spot for community events, business meetings and banquets.
The nightclub will begin entertainment at 9 p.m. and will be open seven days. Baclawski said it will probably close by 2 a.m. and maybe by midnight Sundays, Mondays and Tuesdays.
The restaurant will be for family dining, he said, but there will be no teen nights at the night club.
He said club patrons will be expected to dress nicely -- for example, dress jeans are OK, but no grungy work jeans. There will be "door hosts" in suits rather than bouncers. He said customers will be treated with respect, and staff will try to diffuse any situations before they escalate out of control.
He said the club will pay off-duty Austintown police to patrol the parking lots Wednesdays through Sundays.
"They have instant backup and training -- better than the typical security or bouncer would have," he said.
He said the new owners want to be sensitive to homes nearby. "We won't be taking trash out at 3 a.m. and waking people up -- the Dumpsters are right [near] their back yards," he said.
"The teen thing was a difficult situation. We addressed a lot of community issues."