On Saturday, August 19, the Keswick Tavern at 294 N Keswick Avenue in Glenside posted a response to recent social media posts regarding a temporary shutdown by the Bureau of Liquor Control Enforcement on the evening of August 15.
The letter states that the shutdown was “Due to processing issues beyond our control” and that “we have worked tirelessly to correct the situation.”
The tavern’s longtime owners, the McKeevers, state in the letter that they expect to reopen sometime this week.
The letter goes on to express gratitude to the community, the Pennsylvania State Police, and the Gerhard family, who own Gerhard’s Appliances housed next door.
The McKeevers: Bob, Michelle, and daughter Kelly
Comments to the post include:
Couldn’t meet nicer people. Glad to see you are back. God bless all of you.
An excellent letter, and so gracious considering what you went through!!
I am glad that you were able to have the issue resolved and that you will be reopenning soon. Thank you for all that you contribute to the community.
Comments also mention a Philly Voice article which covered the August 15 raid. An excerpt:
BLCE is a division of the Pennsylvania State Police that carries out enforcement for Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board. The Keswick Tavern had been warned “several times” that its liquor license was not valid and that it could not sell alcohol until a renewal was completed, BLCE officials said. None of the bar’s equipment was taken as part of the raid.
“Because it used to be a licensed spot, we only take the liquor,” said Waleska Gonzalez, district office commander of the BLCE’s Allentown office. “If it’s a speakeasy or someone that’s operating without a complete license, or never had a license, we typically take everything. This situation is different. They were operating with an expired license.”
A News Media Statistical Report issued by the Pennsylvania State Police on July 20 states:
From the Keswick Tavern’s Facebook post, which has received over 500 “likes” and 120 shares at the time of this writing:
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Photos courtesy of Randy Garbin for Glenside Local, ValleyForge.org