DJ’s On The Hill will add another 18 and older night with its monthly “House on the Hill” event. The event will be separate from the bar’s weekly 18 and older night on Tuesday.

It will be held on the third Saturday of every month and will feature house, techno and electronic music played by several disc jockeys, said Mike Cauchon, DJ’s bar manager.

“We created these 18 and over nights just to give kids a better club experience because the majority of kids aren’t 21,” Cauchon said. “We wanted to give kids that aren’t 21 a chance to have a night life, too.”

The idea for “House on the Hill” was created during the summer when a student disc jockey approached Cauchon and explained that house was quickly becoming a popular genre among college students, and that the bar could specifically benefit from having an 18 and older night. Cauchon said the “house experience” of a complex lighting and sound system also drew him in.

The bar hired additional guards with Buffalo Security Co. to prevent underage drinking and check IDs, while a team of four DJ’s employees covers the main floor of the bar, he said.

The four employees on the main floor will prevent underage customers from getting drinks from legal friends they may have arrived with, Cauchon said. The wristband system will also help prevent this, he said, adding that underage patrons will be stamped upon entrance while those 21 and older will be given a wristband indicating they’re of drinking age. Any underage customers found with a drink in their hand will be “kicked out” of the bar, he said.

So far, Cauchon said the bar has experienced few problems during its 18 and older nights on Tuesdays, which started in January.

“As long as everyone under me and my staff is doing their job, we won’t run into any serious issues,” Cauchon said.

DJ’s wants to provide an experience that is both safe and entertaining, he added.

Said Cauchon: “We heard from kids that they really wanted a place that they could go and have a club-like experience. I think these kids just want to go out and dance, and that’s what I’m trying to give them.”

Published on September 5, 2013 at 12:27 am

Contact Annie: apalme05@syr.edu