Motorcycle Riders Defend Chesapeake Beach Eatery

About 50 motorcycle enthusiasts filled the Chesapeake Beach Town Hall last week to support the owners of a new restaurant and bar and to quell a rumor that the establishment would encourage motorcycle gangs.

The turnout was prompted by remarks this month by Town Council member Stewart B. Cumbo, who said that the remodeled Beach Cove Restaurant would cater to bikers and bring a bad element into town. Cumbo reiterated those concerns at Thursday's council meeting.

"For 34 years, this Town Council has done quite a lot to clean this town up. . . . It concerns me that we might become a biker destination," Cumbo said.

Cumbo, who works for the Maryland State Police, said he is also worried that the new owners are "going to allow colors," the patches that adorn many motorcycle riders' clothing.

"It tends to bring problems down the road," Cumbo said.

Kerry Harrington and his family recently bought the vacant Beach Cove Restaurant on Route 261. They have been remodeling and plan a grand opening next month for "a family restaurant," Harrington said.

He told the council that he plans to serve anyone who comes in, including bikers. "To not welcome this would be ridiculous in a town where so many people ride," he said.

Harrington also owns Renegade Classics, a motorcycle clothing store in Prince Frederick.

"I own a construction company, too, but nobody is concerned about carpenters coming in," he said.

Almost every restaurant and bar in North Beach and Chesapeake Beach allows colors, Harrington said. He said police officers and Vietnam veterans wear colors when they ride.

Neal Ackerson, a Chesapeake Beach resident and state director of a motorcycle rights organization, said that colors can be removed. "That is where you have to watch the discrimination issue," he said.

Some praised Harrington for his efforts to help the community. Robby Royer, whose son has diabetes, said Harrington has helped him raise more than $10,000 for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation.

Royer said he is looking forward to having a restaurant where he could "take my four sons and not worry about being thrown out." The boys range from 2 to 8.

Cumbo's comments about the restaurant have prompted the Calvert County Liquor Board to ask Harrington to defend the liquor license he recently received.

The board expressed concerns that the new restaurant would be more of a tavern and would need a license that typically receives more public scrutiny, said Marshall S. Gibson Jr., chairman of the liquor board.

Gibson said the board has asked the Harringtons to "our next meeting so we can get more definitive answers from them of what their sales are going to be."

Several council members vowed to back the Harringtons, saying that they encourage new businesses to take over empty spaces.

"To single out a business because he owns a separate business and say that it isn't good for the town . . . I don't support that," said Julie Spano, a council member.