Council Hears From Public

By Glenn Collins
Tuesday, August 10, 2010 | 2:08 PM
https://hbtv.us/news/?story_id=398

The City Council held a public hearing Monday to hear comments on the proposed Alcoholic Beverage Ordinance and approximately 40 people attended. Only nine people had questions and most inquired about signage and fees.

Mayor Ken Sunseri opened the meeting by saying, "The City is wet. We are not here to address the emotions of the issue; we are here to address the regulations."

The Council hopes to enact the ordinance at its next meeting, August 16.

City Attorney Jeff Mobley gave an overview of the types of establishments addressed in the ordinance. He told anyone with more questions to contact him or the Mayor to "make sure we're all operating from the same understanding of the law."

Both Sunseri and Mobley made very clear that the signage part of the ordinance would be strictly enforced. Specifically, no outdoor signage will be allowed except for a sign stating the name of the establishment. Any signage relating to what is for sale, specials, discounts, brands, etc., must be inside the store. Sunseri said, "We've worked very hard to clean up our city and signs would create a nuisance."

Twenty-five percent of the alcohol license fees collected by the city will go to the schools; the remainder will go into the general fund.

As for clubs or lounges, the city plans to use land it owns near the Marshal Durbin hatchery as the 'Entertainment District.' The land is undeveloped and available for purchase from the city.

HBTV taped the entire hearing: [CLICK HERE to Watch].