Multiple Grey Lady Charges

Owners of the Grey Lady on West Lake Drive in Montauk were arraigned in East Hampton Town Justice Court Monday on multiple charges including overcrowding and having converted the restaurant and bar into a nightclub.

On July 1, it was alleged that tables and chairs were removed from the bar area, creating a dance floor, which changed the Grey Lady’s use. The site plan shows the establishment’s capacity as 48. Code enforcement officers counted 190 people there on July 1, with a large uncounted crowd on a back deck.

The Grey Lady was again cited for overcrowding July 9; it also had been charged with a noise violation on June 24. The town alleged an external speaker was above the legal decibel limit. The Grey Lady’s attorney, Carl Irace, entered a not-guilty plea on all charges. “We look forward to defending against these charges in court,” Mr. Irace said yesterday.

A partier at the Grey Lady from Haledon, N.J., had been arraigned the previous day. Joshua Lopez, 35, was at a bachelor party there when, a little after midnight Saturday, he was alleged to have pulled a fire alarm switch, emptying the establishment. He was arrested on a felony charge of turning in a false alarm. Mr. Lopez, wearing a T-shirt that read “Groom Squad,” was released Sunday morning after posting $500 bail.