By Chris Hunt
Correspondent
Editor's Note: This article was intended for publication on Dec. 20, 2021.
Three years ago, the College community suffered one of its worst tragedies in recent history — an incident that is still vividly remembered by faculty, students and their families. Michael T. Sot, a 20-year-old sophomore math major and brother of Phi Kappa Psi from Clark, New Jersey, was fatally hit in a head-on collision while serving as a designated driver for his fraternity.
With the opening of another sports bar in Campus Town — Arooga’s Grill House and Sports Bar — the risks of such an establishment are not going unnoticed.
In November, David Lamar, 25, was sentenced to 12 years in state prison for driving while intoxicated and crashing into Sot’s vehicle on Dec. 2, 2018. Sot made numerous trips that night to pick up party-goers until 2 a.m., when his car was hit on Pennington Road — not far from campus. Lamar swerved into oncoming traffic and collided head-on with the vehicle containing Sot and his five passengers, injuring everyone in Sot’s car. Sot succumbed to the injuries of the accident two days later on Dec. 4, 2018, while the others in the car recovered after being in critical condition.
Lamar had spent the hours before the accident at Landmark Americana Tap & Grill in Campus Town. Lamar admitted that on that night, he went to the bar where he drank alcoholic beverages, including a large mixed drink called a “fishbowl,” and later drove while under the influence. He had a blood-alcohol level three times the legal limit and was traveling 85 mph at the time of the fatal crash, more than double the speed limit.
The Sot family filed a lawsuit against Landmark in December 2018 for over-serving and selling alcoholic beverages to a visibly intoxicated patron, failure to properly train their bartenders and staff and for the bar’s promotion and advertisement of excessive drinking.
After the incident, a lot changed for Landmark. The New Jersey Attorney General Gurbir S. Grewal and the state Division of Alcoholic Beverage Control [ABC] made an announcement that Landmark would have to stop selling their “fishbowl” drinks and customers could only be served one alcoholic beverage at a time.
Other changes were also made, such as adding two Brita water pitchers to the end of the bar with a stack of triangular paper cups sitting next to them, as well as signs on the walls advertising parking passes to customers wanting to leave their cars overnight and take a Lyft home instead. The establishment that used to stay open until 2 a.m. started closing at midnight on Thursday through Saturday and at 10 p.m. the rest of the week. Landmark was also ordered to stop serving alcohol at 11 p.m. from Thursday through Saturday and at 9:15 p.m. the rest of the week by ABC’s Acting Director James B. Graziano.
Despite all of the changes to their policies, Landmark never seemed to be able to shake the stain that the Sot tragedy left on them. Not long after the incident, the restaurant permanently closed its doors.
Some students believe the restaurant closed because of the incident.
“It must have been a major contributing factor,” said Daniel Sullivan, a junior communication studies major. “The timing just seems too coincidental for it to not be.”
After Landmark’s permanent closure last year, the retail space remained empty for months and served as an eerie reminder to the community of the events that took place in 2018 — until very recently.
Arooga’s Grill House and Sports Bar opened its doors to the public on Dec. 12 in the location where Landmark once stood.
Because of the nature of these types of establishments and their reliance on alcohol being a part of their business structure, some students and alumni of the College have reservations about another sports bar opening near the campus. Some fear that students will be put back in danger with an increased number of people driving to Campus Town for the sports bar.
Faris El Akbani, a recent graduate of the College, was enrolled in the school when the Sot accident happened and said he did not understand why Campus Town administrators allowed another sports bar to open.
“This decision is notably tone-deaf, especially considering that the target demographic of the bar are college students and young locals who may have even known Michael,” El Akbani said. “This was a careless decision by Campus Town and its administrators because the tragedy was widely known and deeply affected the campus community.”
To proactively address these concerns, Campus Police met with Arooga's ownership and the ABC.
“Several restrictions are in place to make this environment as safe as possible,” said Chief of Campus Police Timothy Grant. “Arooga’s has agreed to cooperate fully with requests from law enforcement.”
Grant said Arooga's will not feature outdoor seating to establish that alcohol will remain inside the premises. The restaurant will close daily by 1 a.m. with the last call for alcoholic drinks at 12:30 a.m.. Any staff member serving alcohol to customers must undergo nationally approved training and have the certifications readily available for inspection. The restaurant’s main entrance is the only exit for patrons to use, other than its emergency exits.
Additionally, between 5 p.m. and closing, there will be a staff member posted at the front entrance who is trained in recognizing proper identification and intoxicated individuals. During these same hours, all patrons 21 years or older will wear a wristband in order to be served alcohol, making it clear who is of age. The wristbands will only be received after a detailed inspection of their ID. Campus Police will also be doing their part to keep everyone safe.
“We will have Security Officers present on-site in the evening hours of Thursday through Sunday,” said Grant. “Arooga’s has also accepted our request for video footage within 48 hours when needed.”
Arooga’s mixed drinks will not contain more than two ounces of liquor, officially ending the possibility of another “fishbowl” type drink being included on the menu. Greg Lentine, the senior vice president of sales and marketing for PRC Group, which manages Campus Town, said alcohol will not be the main feature of the business.
“We don’t want a party bar. We want a place where people can go get decent food,” Lentine said in an interview with CommunityNews.org.
Lentine also said 70% of revenue will come from food sales while only 30% will come from alcohol, and described the restaurant as family-friendly.
Because of Landmark’s history, Arooga’s will be taking on a heightened sense of responsibility.
“I truly hope that all of the provisions will be enough,” El Akbani said. “At the end of the day I just want the community to be safe and I definitely wouldn’t want to see another needless tragedy take place.”
