The Birmingham City Council on Tuesday voted to pull all business licenses for The Quest Club, an LGBTQ bar that has been open since 1982, after a heated hearing discussing safety measures since a double homicide at the bar in May.
Attorneys for The Quest said after the hearing that they would ask for a temporary restraining order to keep the bar open.
Don Sparks, owner of The Quest for more than five years, got in a heated confrontation with City Council member J.T. Moore during the hearing. Sparks said lax gun laws were to blame. “You can buy a gun and carry it, but you can’t buy a pack of cigarettes,” he said.
“I believe that you all are very unserious about this situation,” Moore said. “Your establishment is a serious hazard.”
Richard Mauk, attorney for the Quest, said it generates more than $83,000 in sales tax revenue annually for the city.
“What is the cost of a life?” Moore said. “Y’all do not deserve to be open.”
Birmingham Police Sgt. Kenneth Knight told the council that Birmingham police had been called to The Quest 109 times in the past year, and 44 times in the past six months, including the double homicide in May.
On Tuesday morning, two police officers stopped by the club to check security and there was no one screening for guns at the door as the club had agreed to as a safety measure, he said.
“The safety of patrons is not being taken seriously,” Knight said.
Mauk noted the historical role of the bar as a gathering place for the LGBTQ community and for supporting LGBTQ events including Pride month.
“The club is an integral part of the LGBTQ community,” Mauk said.
“I know how important The Quest has been in the past,” said council member Valerie Abbott. “It’s not going to be important in the future” if the safety issues continue, she added.
