The sign looks black in the sunlight but is actually ruby.

Finishing touches were being put on the exterior of the Mohawk Tavern on Friday. The stained-glass inserts above the front and side doors were created by Debora Coombs Criddle, who also restored the prism glass and lighting fixtures.

NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — Patrons at the newly refurbished Mohawk Tavern's debut will get a treat next week.

Owner Alexander "Sandy" Smith was granted a live entertainment license by the License Commission on Thursday after a band friendly with Wilco asked to do a setup there.

Smith did not have the name of the band, but said they were touring through the area and asked to play at the Mohawk.

Update on June 22: The band is the Invisible Familiars, fronted by Jared Samuel, which will play as a Solid Sound After Party on Saturday, June 27.

Wilco's Solid Sound Festival returns to the city from June 26 to 28.

The performance will be a nice coup for the 80-year-old bar, which has been closed for two years. The Mulcare Building, where the tavern is located, was purchased by David Moresi (grandson of the bar's founder) in 2013 and has been undergoing an intensive rehabilitation. The bar is expected to open within days; a planned Italian restaurant and residential units above by late summer.

Smith had not intended to pursue an entertainment license, then considered the performance as a one-time thing.  

"Then I thought, I should give myself to the opportunity to do more," he told the commission. "I plan to keep it jazzy and low key and acoustical, and not go late."

Commissioners Rosemari Dickinson and Chairman Jeff Polucci expressed concern over noise for the future tenants, noting there had been past complaints.

"I plan on being a good neighbor," said Smith, adding that noise had been taken into consideration during the renovation. The ceiling is "stuffed full of foam," he said.

The commission also approved one-day licenses for the annual VFW Post 996 fundraiser on Aug. 1 and to Desperados for the Eagle Street Beach Party on July 10.

A representative for the VFW said the fundraiser cornhole tournament outside would run from 3 to about 8, although she asked for permit until 10 to make sure the club was covered. The license was granted until 9.

David Atwell, owner of Desperados, said the annual beach party's family portion would run from 3 to 6, and serving of alcohol would follow until 10. The license was approved with a rain date to be filled in as announced.

In other business, the commission is sending a letter to Timothy Lanfair, owner of TJ's Southwestern Bar & Bistro on Ashland Street, requesting he surrender the restaurant's pouring license back to the city.

Dickinson said she had learned from an Alcoholic Beverages Control Commission investigator that Lanfair had closed the business at least two weeks ago. An investigation had apparently been prompted by written complaints to the commission by former employees.

"When the investigator met up with him there, he told him that he was closed," she said. "He was out of business and he was not going to be in business."

Should the license not be surrendered in a timely manner, the commissioners will request Lanfair attend the July meeting.

In an email to iBerkshires on Friday, Lanfair said he had told both the ABCC investigator and the building inspector that he was "unsure of a permanent closing. No final decision was made."

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