Fearful of "Vomiting and Peeing", Foes Fight Barclays Liquor License

Before Barclays Center can dispense a pint of Brooklyn Lager in the upper deck or a glass of Chateau Lafitte Rothschild 1982 in Mikhail Prokhorov's supersuite, the arena must get approval for a liquor license. And as to be expected, the same people who fought the arena are now fighting demon booze. No one thinks they will win.

"The arena is a monstrosity to begin with, but with a liquor license, there will be drunk guys vomiting and peeing in the street," said Wanda Fleck at local community board meeting. She was reiterating critics long-standing fear of frequent urination on the streets near the arena. "They haven’t shown how they can protect quality of life for the neighbors," added Gib Veconi.

But Patti Hagen, who led opposition to the arena early one, thought there could a saving grace for her neighbors. "They serve alcohol at Yankee Stadium, and there are nothing but brawls — and I don’t see how this would be any different, except that no one goes to Nets games."

• Arena Foes Will Fight Barclays Center Booze Permit - Gersh Kuntzman - New York Times