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The district manager told the Boston Licensing Board the restaurant had been operating those hours since at least the COVID-19 pandemic.
A Roslindale Wendy’s was warned twice this week after Boston police found the restaurant open four hours past its licensed closing time on two occasions, raising concerns about late-night activity at the location.
The Wendy’s at 520 American Legion Highway is licensed to operate from 10:30 a.m. to 11 p.m., and police told the Boston Licensing Board that they found the restaurant open after midnight on July 14 and again on July 20.
The restaurant’s website listed its closing time as 3 a.m., four hours later than its licensed closing time. Police also found that required inspectional and fire licenses were not posted at the restaurant.
At a Licensing Board hearing Tuesday, Kate Goble, the area operations director for the local Wendy’s restaurants, apologized to police and said she was unaware the restaurant was operating outside its licensed hours.
“I am new to this role here in Boston,” Goble said at a hearing on Tuesday. “I was unaware that we were violating any operating hours.”
Goble said the restaurant is now closing at 11 p.m. and is working through the process of applying for permission to operate later. The licenses are now posted as well, she said.
But board members said extending the restaurant hours is not a simple fix.
“What made you think you could open until 3 a.m.?” Chairwoman Kathleen Joyce asked Goble at the hearing.
Goble said she could not answer because the practice began before she took over the location. The district manager told the board that the restaurant had been operating those hours since at least the COVID-19 pandemic.
Goble said the second late-night violation resulted from miscommunication and personnel changes.
Police said the late-night hours have also raised concerns due to activity around the restaurant.
Sgt. Michael Sullivan told the board that the Wendy’s is near two vacant parking lots that attract “low riders, the revelers, the scooters” who come into the area to get food.
“If it was just a situation where a couple of night workers wanted to grab something to eat, that is what it is,” said Sullivan at Tuesday’s hearing. “But, the fact that even this past weekend we wrote over 65 tickets for motor vehicle trespassing on American Legion Highway, it really adds to our concerns in the area.”
Joyce said the board has received multiple complaints from neighbors about what happens around the restaurant when it stays open until 3 a.m.
“It’s an attractive nuisance,” said Joyce. “Cars are idling. Crowds are gathering. And it’s become a dangerous situation.”
Joyce also questioned how a national restaurant chain could have been unaware of its licensed operating hours.
“As district manager, all the way up to the top, way down to the people working there on a particular shift, they need to be aware of what they can and can not do,” Joyce said. “This has been a problem for Boston police and a strain on resources.”
She added: “I’ve heard it’s just wild over there.”
At the voting hearing on Thursday, Joyce said that the restaurant needs to address its operations and work with the community before seeking an extension of its hours.
“To me, this isn’t just a matter of submitting an application for an extension of hours,” she said. “This is taking a look at their operations and seeing how they can operate safely within their closing hours currently.”
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