SLA strips Grand Ave. bar of liquor license

The state Liquor Authority on July 11 revoked the liquor license of White Diamond Lounge & Café, a Grand Avenue bar that has been a consistent source of community complaints and has been visited by police more than 20 times in the past year.

An SLA spokeswoman said the White Diamond, at 1299 Grand Ave. near the Baldwin-South Hempstead border, was charged with having a disorderly premise. The board voted unanimously to revoke its license to serve alcohol.

According to the spokeswoman, noone from the lounge attended the hearing. The bar’s owners can apply for another license in the future. A manager or owner could not be reached for comment by press time.

Assemblyman Brian Curran, a Republican from Lynbrook, told the Herald he’s heard multiple complaints about the White Diamond and that police are familiar with the establishment.

Officers have been called to the White Diamond 22 times in the last year, according to Curran.

“The precinct indicated that they were aware of it, and if I recall correctly, several of the high-profile incidents involving Baldwin stem from people either coming from or going to the White Diamond,” he said. “We clearly heard from the community and the precinct that this was a source of problems plaguing Baldwin and the South Hempstead communities.”

Curran said he and Deputy Inspector Bill Leahy, commanding officer of the 1st Precinct, sent a letter to the SLA requesting an investigation into the property.

Curran added that if the liquor license revocation “increases the quality of life for Baldwin, I’m happy about it.”

One Baldwinite who lives close to the White Diamond, and asked that her name not be published, said she is “happy that their liquor license finally got taken away.”

Baldwinite John Cools said the site has been a problem for years, dating back to when it was called the Black Pearl. “The issues just continued,” he said.