Wilson Street Residents and Selectmen Blast Workmen’s Hall Social Club Over Code Infractions and Nuisance Behavior-November 14, 1991

Selectmen Threaten License Revocation Following Complaints of Public Urination, Illegal Liquor Sales, and Zoning Violations

NORWOOD – Tensions between residential neighbors and the historic Workmen’s Hall social club on Wilson Street boiled over during a fiery Board of Selectmen meeting. Reported by Patriot Ledger staff writer Lyndsey Layton, the hearing featured sharp reprimands from municipal leaders and distressed homeowners who described living next door to the 300-member private club as intolerable.

Homeowners Donna and Mike Doliner, whose driveway borders the property, shared a litany of disturbances that peaked one evening last month when Mrs. Doliner returned home to find a stranger publicly urinating on their property. Residents testified that nuisances had escalated sharply since the club installed an outdoor bocce court over the summer, drawing patrons who drink beer on the court and relieve themselves in wooded areas facing neighboring homes.

Selectman John Kinnaly launched a blistering critique at club manager Joseph Curran—who is unrelated to Selectman Joseph Curran—demanding answers regarding the misconduct. “You’re running a pigpen operation up there,” Kinnaly stated. “Men urinating on the trees and the bocce court. What’s going on up there?”

Multi-Agency Violations Cited by Police, Building Inspector, and Board of Health

The club faced a barrage of citations and regulatory infractions presented across multiple town departments:

• Police Department: Police Detective Neil Murphy submitted a thick stack of investigative reports documenting repeated liquor license violations, specifically noting that the club had been illegally serving alcohol to non-members and permitting non-members to rent the hall for private functions.
• Building Department: Building Inspector John E. Grover reported that the club’s glaring outdoor illumination violated local zoning bylaws.
• Board of Health: Board Chairman Jean Taylor revealed that Workmen’s Hall was operating without a required common victualler’s license, noting that Curran had refused to comply with health regulations and told health officials they would have to take the club to court.

Defending the establishment, manager Joseph Curran argued that the club was operating just as it had since opening in 1955. He maintained that outdoor drinking was permitted under their license and claimed ignorance of any daytime urination incidents, asserting, “If that is occurring, I don’t know how to police it, since the club is not operating at the time it is happening.” When Curran added that his disciplinary actions were constrained by the club’s board of directors, Selectman Gary Lee fired back, “The bottom line is your name is on the certificate. It’s up to you to know what’s going on. To plead that you’re just the manager, to plead ignorance, is just too much.”

With Kinnaly threatening an immediate license revocation hearing if the board of directors failed to clean up its act, club treasurer Don Galle stepped forward to promise corrective action. Galle agreed to submit a formal letter outlining remediation steps and noted that a new manager had recently been elected, though he declined to comment on whether the leadership shift was directly tied to the disciplinary fallout.

Archival Note: This article has been dynamically reconstructed from the original public record print archives of the Patriot Ledger