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HomeMy WebLinkAbout[6] PH - 2:00 AM Bar Closingcrr~f aF tiT acisF vrr MEETING DATE: AGENDA ITEM: SUBMITTED BY: Council Agenda Item 6 October 16, 2008 Public Hearing, 2AM Bar Closing Administration BOARD/COMMISSION/COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATION: PREVIOUS COUNCIL ACTION: In reviewing the past actions of the City Council, the 2AM Bar Closing matter has been before the Council on four separate occasions. For your convenience the table below summarizes the past actions of the Council along with the vote for each meeting. DATE ACTION OF THE COUNCI4 VOTE _FASS /FAIL 07-02-03 Amend the Liquor License and leave the bar Ayes: Utsch, Wick, Rieke Pass closin at 1 AM. Na s: Hosch Rassier 3:2:0 10-02-03 Keep the Bar Closing at 1 AM and review the matter again. Future consideration should Ayes: Utsch, Wick, Rieke Pass include information on the positive and negative Nays: Hosch, Rassier 3:2:0 aspects of communities that have extended the bar hours. 10-21-04 Keep the Bar Closing at lAM Ayes: Utsch, Wick, Rassier, Rieke Pass Na s: Hosch 4:1:0 02-17-05 Motion to extend bar closing on Thursday, Friday Ayes: Wick, Symanietz Fail and Saturda for a trial eriod Na s: Carlbom, Rassier Rieke 2:3:0 BACKGROUND INFORMATION: The Council in September agreed to conduct a public hearing to consider the possible extension of the bar hours to 2AM. Administration has placed the notice of hearing in the City Newsletter, WJON, KNSI and St. Cloud Times. In addition, a letter was sent to each on-sale license holder notifying them of the public hearing. The Police Chief has contacted communities such as St. Peter, Northfield, Mankato and Marshall to see if they have expanded the bar hours and. if so what problems they have experienced. He will have that information for the Council at the meeting as he is still waiting for a response from same of the departments. BUDGET/FISCAL IMPACT: It is unable to determine the impact of the bar hours. It is more likely that the Police Officers schedule would have to change to avoid paying overtime costs. ATTACHMENTS: Notice sent to liquor license holders and extract of Council meetings when the same matter was considered. REQUESTED COUNCIL ACTION: When the Council agreed to conduct a public hearing for the matter it was indicated that the Council was soliciting opinion on October 16 and the decision might not be made at the hearing. The Council will need to determine if they want to make a decision on this matter or just take in the testimony. - ~ CITY OF ST. OS~PH 1 W~~w.cityof stjoseph.com September 29, 2008 Mark Zimmer LaPlayette Bar & Restaurant PO Box 337 Administrator St. Joseph, MN 56374 56374 ~udy ~eyrens RE: 2AM Bar Closing Mayor AI Rassier Dear Mark: Councilors Members of the City Council have reported that they have been approached to reconsider Steve Frank the 2AM bar Closing. In an effort to gather information, the City Council has scheduled a Rick Schultz Public hearing for Thursday, October 16, 2008 at 7:00 PM. The purpose of the hearing is to accept input from not only license holders but residents and interested persons as well. Renee Symanietz Dale Wick Although the Council is accepting testimony, it is undetermined as to whether or not a decision will be made at this meeting. If you have any questions or need additional information please do not hesitate to contact the City Offices at 320-363-7201. Sincerely, CITY OF ST. JOSEPH ~-4 . Judy eyrens ,' Admi istrator i~ zs College Avenue North PO Box 668 Saint ~oseph, Minnesota 56374 phone 3zo.363.7zoi Fax 3zo.363.o34z Mark Zimmer Carole Tamm Dale Schneider LaPlayette Bar & Restaurant EI Paso Club & Lanes Sal's Bar & Grill PO Box 337 PO Box 58 31164 - 115th Ave St. Joseph, MN 56374 St. Joseph, MN 56374 St. Joseph, MN 56374 Ken Hiemenz American Legion PO Box 381 St. Joseph, MN 56374 Susan Palmer College of St. Benedict 37 College Ave S St. Joseph, MN 56374 Mark Loso Loso's Mainstreet Pub PO Box 596 St. Joseph, MN 56374 Dave Trobec Trobec's Event Center 1 Central Ave S St. Stephen MN 56375 Paul Petrek Stonehouse Tavern & Eatery 2010 CSAH 75 E St. Joseph MN 56374 - -- i O .~~ •_ r~ I ~f ~ i ~~~E~U~~ OCT 0 2 2008 10/ 1 / 08 CITY OF ST. JOSEPH ,~ ~. , ~,,~ ~ .~ , ~~ ~ ~•a: ~~ ~ ~ Hello Judy, 3~ Eli Just a short note regarding the two AM bar closing. As a parent and member of the St. Joseph downtown community, I can't think of one good reason to encourage a two AM closing. In the past couple of years, even with the one o'clock bar closing, we have had to replace van windows twice due to vandalism, not to mention cleaning up broken bottles. So there it is, our two cents worth...short and sweet! Best Regards, ~_- ~~~ Bobby Vee Rockhouse Productions 4~, Bar Violations2005 - 2008 Name Date Cited for Fine LaPlayette, Inc 12/28/2005 after hours drinking 4/22/2006 unaccompanied minors $500.00 12-20-07 Minor under age drinking .$400.00 3/28/2008 under age drinking Stone House 6/19/2006 outdoor alcohol 5/14/2008 noise violation $300.00 Loso's Pub Main Street 4/6/2008 under age drinking $100.00 Sal's Bar 9/21/2008 unaccompanied minor $100.00 9/28/2008 under age drinking $300.00 Extract of City Council Minutes July 2, 2003 Amendment to Ordinance 71, Liquor Licensing and Hours of Operation: Weyrens reported that the City Attorney has reviewed the Liquor Ordinance in relation to the extended bar hours adopted by the MN Legislature. Cities have the option of allowing the bars to remain open until 2:00 AM. The current Ordinance governing liquor license hours states that the hours will be consistent with State Law. Therefore, bar owners would have the ability to request a permit to remain open until 2:00 AM. If the Council wishes to leave the closing time at 1:00 AM, the Ordinance must be amended. Hosch stated that the area Cities will be meeting on July 29, 2003 and will be discussing the bar closing time and he would encourage the Council to wait until after that meeting before making a decision. Hosch stated that he would .allow those present to make a brief comment regarding the 2:00 AM closing. Mark Loso of Loso's Pub, approached the City Council in support of the 2:00 AM closing and stated it is his opinion that the extended bar time would benefit the community. Loso stated that many of the students do not arrive at the bar until 11:00 PM and they are all forced to leave at 1:00 AM. Loso stated that it is his opinion that if the bar hours were extended the patrons would gradually leave between 1:00 AM and 2:00 AM, rather than the entire bar being forced to leave at 1:00 AM. The additional hours would limit promotional drink specials as license holders have an additional hour to sell alcohol. Loso stated that the costs of operating a liquor license are steadily increasing and they need to find a way to recoup some of the costs otherwise they cannot survive. Pat Bednarz of the La Playette, approached the City Council speaking in support of the 2:00 AM closing. Bednarz stated that if the area Cities allow the 2:00 AM closing and the City of St. Joseph does not, he will be at a disadvantage for banquets. Bednarz stated that business/individuals planning an event would most likely opt to schedule their event at an establishment that remains open until 2:00 AM. In addition, Bednarz stated that there is the potential of creating a safety issue with intoxicated individuals driving to a bar that is open until 2:00 AM. Carol Tamm of the EI Paso, approached the City Council speaking in opposition to the 2:00 AM closing. Tamm stated that her establishment schedules weddings and banquets and she does not believe that business will be lost if St. Joseph does not allow the 2:00 AM closing. She stated it has been her experience that banquet guests leave shortly after an event is ended. Tamm further stated it is her opinion that if the bar hours are extended the patrons will arrive at the bar one hour later then they do currently. She also questioned the additional police costs that would be incurred if the bar hours are extended. Police Chief Peter Jansky approached the City Council speaking in objection to the 2:00 AM closing. Jansky stated that if the hours are extended additional overtime may be required, as rather than the patrons leaving at 2:00 AM they will leave at 3:00 AM and there is the potential of people strolling through the neighborhoods until 4:00 AM. The current police schedule is structured around the 1:00 AM closing, as are the surrounding City departments with officers ending their shift at 3:00 PM. Rassier questioned if there would be an additional tax for liquor establishments requesting to remain open until 2:00 a.m. Hosch stated that any establishment requesting to remain open until 2:00 must submit a permit and the State of Minnesota has adopted a permit fee ranging from $ 200 to $ 600. The fee collected by the State is retained by the State with the City receiving no benefit. Hosch stated that he would encourage the City to adopt a local permit fee if the liquor license hours are extended to 2:00 AM. Rassier questioned if the City is tying their hands by waiting to amend the Liquor Ordinances until the Intergovernmental meeting that will be held on July 29, 2003. Hosch reported that Sartell is the only City that has extended the bar hours until 2:00 AM. Utsch made a motion to amend the following Ordinances establishing a 1:00 AM closing for all liquor establishments. The Council will reconsider this action after the July 29, 2003 Intergovernmental meeting. The motion was seconded by Wick and passed unanimously. Extract of October 2, 2003 City Council Minutes Bar Hours of Operation: Weyrens stated the Council at a past meeting requested that the Council consider the extension of bar hours after the City of St. Cloud considers the same. The St. Cloud City Council recently approved the extension of bar hours from 1:00 AM to 2:00 AM for a six month period. At the end of the six month period the affects of the extension will be reviewed and the St. Cloud Ciy Council will reconsider the extended bar hours of operation. Utsch made a motion to retain the 1:00 AM bar closing and review the possible extension after six months. Before reconsider by the City Council the Police Chief should provide a report from the area police departments whose communities extended the bar hours on any positive or negative affects created by the extended bar hours. The motion was seconded by Rieke. Discussion: Hosch stated that he was indifferent as to whether or not the bar hours were extended, however, he believes the decision should be a regional decision. Therefore, if the surrounding Cities are extending their hours so should the City of St. Joseph. Hosch stated he is concerned that impaired bar patrons may leave St. Joseph at 1:00 AM to continue drinking in a City where the bars are open until 2:00 AIIA, creating a potential safety issue. Rassier stated it is his understanding that even if the City approves extended bar hours, each liquor establishment can decide if they wish to participate. Communities where the bar hours have been extended have had minimal applications to do such. Rassier stated he concurs with Hosch and believes the decision to extend bar hours should be a regional decision and he supports extending the bar hours to 2:00 AM as the Cities of Sartell and St. Cloud have already adopted such. Wick stated it is his opinion that the Minnesota Legislature will resolve the bar hours during the next legislative session taking the control out of local jurisdictions. Ayes: Utsch, Wick, Rieke Nays: Hosch, Rassier Motion Carries 3:2:0 unanimously. Extract of October 21, 2004 City Council Meeting 2AM Bar Closing: Weyrens reported that when the Legislature changed the Statute allowing bars to be open until 2AM the Council considered amending the St. Joseph Ordinance governing alcohol. The Council voted to keep the bar closing at 1AM and review the request again after six months. It was the intention of the Council to contact municipalities where bar hours were extended to see if they experienced any problems with enforcement. Weyrens stated that she was contacted by Mark Loso of Loso's Main Street Pub to request reconsideration of the closing time. Mark Loso of Loso's Mainstreet Pub approached the Council to request the extended bar hours until 2AM. Loso stated that the majority of their customers are college students and that most of them do not go out until 11:00. Extending the bar hours would provide him an extra hour of receipts and make him competitive with the surrounding bars in other municipalities. Loso stated that his weekend receipts have not changed since the legislature has allowed the extended bar hours. Loso further stated that he has contacted all the Liquor License holders in St. Joseph and only % of the holders are in favor of the extended bar hours. However, they did indicate that if the bar hours are extended and they are trying to sell their establishment, the resale value would be higher. Police Chief Jansky stated that he has some concerns about the potential 2AM bar closing. He doesn't have the staff to change the hours to allow for 3 extra hours of coverage per week. Rassier questioned Jansky if the police schedule could be modified, moving shift change back one hour. Jansky stated that there are other issues to be dealt with and that he could not change the police schedule to accommodate the extended bar hours. Jansky stated that he has discussed this matter with the Police Chiefs of St. Cloud and Moorhead. Both Chiefs indicate that extending the bar hours has shifted everything back one hour. Patrons are not spending additional money if bars, they are arriving one hour later. Both St. Cloud and Moorhead have stated that they did not experience a negative affect with the change in bar hours. Another concern that Chief Jansky expressed is that of the community. Currently, the students create noise at 1AM when they leave the bars. Changing the time of bar closing would simply mean that they would create noise at 2AM instead. With the current 1AM bar closing, it is normally 3AM before all the noise is cleared. Changing the bar hours has the potential of creating disturbances until 4 AM. Loso responded that in his opinion, it does not matter what time residents are disturbed, rather they are disturbed period. Therefore, the extension of bar hours would not have an additional affect. Jansky further stated that in his opinion, St. Joseph is different that St. Cloud and Moorhead. St. Joseph has a high number of residential rental units throughout the City. When the bar is closed the students typically walk home, most having to go through a residential neighborhood. In addition, the bars are located in close proximity to residential dwelling units. Utsch stated that the community should not be burdened by more noise from the students. Utsch also stated that the 1AM bar closing has been okay in the City for a long time. He does not see any reason as to why it should be changed. Hosch stated that it would be safer for those who go to the bars if they didn't have to drive to another City to stay out until 2AM. According to Utsch, the students should know their limit and know when its time to stop drinking. Hosch expressed his approval of the 2AM bar closing. He stated that we are the only city in the County that does not have the 2AM bar closing. Because the bars in St. Joseph close earlier, he is concerned that students are driving to other cities to go to the bars for an extra hour. One student who was present at the meeting did state that they do drive to St. Cloud to go out for the extra hour due to the bars closing in St. Joseph at 1AM. Wick questioned the liquor licensing period. Weyrens responded that liquor licenses are issued for 12 months, July 1 through June 30. If the Council is inclined to extend the bar hours, the Council most authorize the staff to prepare an amendment to the current Ordinance. This amendment must also discuss the time frame for which patrons must clear the liquor establishment. Rieke clarified that if the Council does not extend the bar hours, the Ordinance would not need amendment. Wick discussed the Extract of October 21, 2004 City Council Meeting possibility of a trial period for extension. Weyrens stated that this method was used for the Cities of St. Cloud and Waite Park. Utsch made a motion to keep the bar closing at 1AM. The motion was seconded by Wick. Ayes: Utsch, Wick, Rassier, Rieke Nays: Hosch Motion Carried 4:1:0 Extract of February 17, 2005 City Council Meeting 2AM Bar Closing: Weyrens stated that the City received a request from Mark Loso requesting reconsideration of the 2AM Bar closing. The Council has twice discussed this matter and both times the request was denied. The major reasons for denial were the potential overtime costs for policing and the potential negative affects on the residential neighborhoods. Ken Loso, Loso's Mainstreet Pub, approached the Council and stated that he feels that St. Joseph is an island all by ourselves. The surrounding areas all have the 2AM bar closing and he stated that he would like the same opportunity as those other areas. He is asking the Council make a decision one way or another. Weyrens stated that if the Ordinance is changed to allow for the 2AM bar closing, all liquor license holders would see an increase in the cost of their liquor licenses based on the current fee structure. Dave Aistrup, LaPlayette, also approached the Council and stated that he feels that this is an economic issue. He stated that the costs to run the business are increasing, and as a result, he needs an extra hour of business to make up for those costs. Mark Zimmer, Former owner of LaPlayette, questioned why liquor license holders would see an increase in their liquor license fees. Carlbom stated that they would all be responsible to pay extra to make up for the increase costs for the City. Zimmer also stated that the bar owners are at a strict disadvantage in our community when it is not consistent with the surrounding cities. Sharon Aistrup, LaPlayette, approached the Council as well to discuss the extra costs for law enforcement. She stated that only a few bars want to participate in the 2AM bar closing and they are only requesting the extra hour on Thursday, Friday, Saturday. Therefore the overtime would be minimal. After hearing the concerns of the local bar owners, Carlbom asked a few other representatives to approach the Council with their thoughts on the issue. Pete Jansky, St. Joseph Police Chief, approached the council and there were some questions raised by the Council members. Wick questioned whether or not he has thought about the possible overtime if this were to pass. Jansky stated that they recently set a new schedule for the officers and he would not know how much overtime would be needed. Wick also questioned whether or not there are extra police officers scheduled on the weekends. Jansky stated that he currently schedules 2 officers from 9PM to 3AM on weekends. However, they do schedule additional officers for special events such as Homecoming and Senior Farewell. Dick Tauten, St. Joseph Public Works Director, appeared before the Council to address the 2AM Snow Removal Ordinance. The current parking ordinance states that cars not be parked on city streets from 2AM - 7AM between November 1 and April 1. Tauten stated that they normally start plowing at 2Am and they generally start on Minnesota Street because the Business District takes the longest. Extending the bar hours would push back plowing 1-1/2 hours. Josh Robinson, St. John's Student Senate, stated that the Student Senates of the College of St. Benedict and St. John's University both passed resolutions opposing the 2AM closing. St. John's passed a resolution with a 14:2 vote with St. Benedict voting unanimously to oppose the 2AM Bar Closing. Robinson stated that it is an economic issue for the school as well and they can't afford to have the bars open for the extra hours. It costs the schools $5-10,000 to provide the buses for the students. Ethically, they have to provide the buses for the students, but they cannot afford to incur any additional costs for that service. Robinson also stated that students come to these schools for a good education and keeping the bars open until 2AM would not be in the best interest of the students. Kiersten Gjerstad, St. Benedict Student Senate, approached the Council as well and she stated that they have the same feelings and concerns, as were raised by the St. John's Student Senate. She also stated that the College of St. Benedict is a part of the St. Joseph Community and they want to be good neighbors and in her opinion the extended bar hours are not in the best interest of the Community. Extract of February 17, 2005 City Council Meeting Symanietz stated that she feels safety is an issue and a reason as to why the bars should remain open the extra hour. She stated that many people may be leaving the bars in St. Joseph and driving to surrounding areas for the extra hour. She also stated that there is an economic issue with being the only City to not allow bars to be open until 2AM. It is her understanding that some bar patrons no longer come to St. Joseph because of the 1 AM closing time. Rassier stated that there are two sides to this issue and that he can see the impact on both. 1. It is important for the City to show support to local businesses and the bars should have the option to stay open later. 2. There are issues with the way things are done in the various city departments and allowing the bars to remain open an hour later may not be in the best interest of the City or the residents. There was a question raised by Wick as to how the liquor licenses are issued by both the City and the State. Weyrens stated that the State Licenses runs concurrent with the City Licenses. She also stated that if this were approved, it would not take effect overnight, as there would be some ordinances that would need to be amended. Rassier stated that the City has no idea how much, if any, additional costs will be incurred by the City due to the extended hours. However, the license fee must absorb all additional costs. Zimmer stated that in other cities, only those bars wishing to remain open later pay an additional fee. Carlbom questioned Weyrens on the costs associated with changing the Parking Ordinance. Weyrens stated that she is unsure about how much it would cost, however she did state that it would cost the City money to implement a new process to remove snow before traffic begins circulating as well as the cost of the new parking signs. Kevin Blanchette, 113 E Minnesota Street, approached the Council stating that he is a resident of the City and that he was awoken by noise from those leaving the bars this morning. He feels that this is a quality of life issue for the residents of St. Joseph. In his opinion, keep the bars open an hour later would simply make for more damage due to their judgment being further impaired. Jim Schuman, St. Benedict Security Director, approached the Council and stated that St. Joseph is unique in that there are two colleges. He stated that he deals with these students when they have been drinking and in his opinion they have enough opportunity with the 1AM Closing. He also stated that he has talked to several other bar owners in surrounding cities and he was told that they have not seen more people in the bars, rather they come an hour later. Loso approached the Council again and stated that when the students leave the bars, they are not going home. As a result, keeping the bars open an extra hour would not have a huge impact on the residential neighborhoods. Carlbom stated that this is the hardest issue he has had to face thus far being that he has to balance two different interests. He also stated that this was brought upon during his campaign. Rassier stated that if no change is going to be made, there would be no need to make a motion. Symanietz made a motion to extend bar closing to 2AM on Thursday, .Friday and Saturdays. The motion was seconded by Wick. Discussion: Wick then questioned the length of the Trial Period for Waite Park and St. Cloud. Weyrens .stated that she is unsure to how long their trial period was, however they are both in full force with the 2AM bar closing. Wick made a friendly amendment to set a trial period for the extended bar hours, with review before issuance of the next liquor license. Discussion: Weyrens stated that even with a trail period affected Ordinances would need to b modified and for fhe snow removal, new signs would need to ordered. Jansky concurred with Weyrens Extract of February 17, 2005 City Council Meeting and stated that the Council will have to modify the Liquor Ordinance and determine at what time the bars must be empty. . After questioning the majority needed to pass, Rieke was advised that this would require a simple majority. He stated that he has empathy for all of those involved. He sfated that it is easy to see both sides of the issue; however he can see the larger picture and he does not believe a 2AM bar closing is in the best interest of anyone, especially the City of St. Joseph. Carlbom suggested adding another friendly amendment to not have this issue discussed for 2 years. Weyrens sfated that it may be better to add that this not be discussed again until new information is available. Wick stated that it is important to keep track of the costs incurred to the City for plowing and Police. Wick made a friendly amendment to extend bar closing to 2AM on Thursday, Friday and Saturdays for a trial period of 1 year keeping track of costs incurred to the City. Discussion: Wick clarified that there would be an Ordinance Amendment brought before the City Council if the motion were fo pass. Rassier and Rieke both agreed that they should consider the impacts of this type of change for the City, as it would be hard to revert to the 1AM closing after it has been implemented. Rassier further stated that it maybe in the better interest of the City to keep the bar closing at 1AM. Ayes: Wick, Symanietz Nays: Carlbom, Rassier, Rieke Motion failed 3:2:0