Liquor Control Board - October 20, 2021 Minutes
LIQUOR CONTROL BOARD
October 20, 2021 1:30 P.M.
Present: Commissioner Piepkorn, Kay Schwarzwalter, John Stibbe, Lydia Tackett, Robert Nelson
Absent: None
Others Present: Police Chief David Zibolski, City Auditor Sprague, Assistant City Attorney Nancy Morris, Tyler Brandt, Dan Hicks, Matt Olson, Rick Carik, Rick’s; Duane Litton, Duffy’s; Dave Erickson, Bulldog Tap, Dave Glessner, Sidestreet, and other interested parties.
Meeting was called to order at 1:30 P.M.
1. Commissioner Piepkorn called the meeting to order and asked if there were any additions or corrections to the minutes of September 15, 2021 and September 15, 2021 Special Meeting. There were no additions or correction to the minutes of September 15, 2021 and September 15, 2021 Special Meeting. Moved by Schwarzwalter, seconded by Tackett to approve the minutes of the September 15, 2021 and September 15, 2021 special meeting of the Liquor Control Board all voted in favor, motion passed unanimously.
2. A. Application to transfer a Class B alcoholic beverage license from Dakota Liquors LLC d/b/a Main Ave Liquors located at 4000 Main Ave to Long Haul Saloon, LLP d/b/a Main Ave Liquors to be located at 3838 Main Ave.
Arch Simonson is purchasing the off sale business and moving to a new location; the new location was most recently an Asian buffet. The location meets the City’s 100-foot rule. No significant issues were noted in the background check.
Moved by Tackett, seconded by Stibbe to approve the transfer of the alcoholic beverage license from Dakota Liquors LLC d/b/a Main Ave Liquors to Long Haul Saloon LLP d/b/a Main Ave Liquors to be located at 3838 Main Ave. Motion passed.
B. Application for a transfer of a Class AB alcoholic beverage license from The Bowler, Inc., d/b/a The Bowler. Transfer due to death of owner. To be located at 2630 South University
Sprague commented James Tandeski was the longtime owner of The Bowler, due to his passing the business is being transferred to Robert Tandeski, with Robert’s son James listed as the manager. No items of concern were discovered in Robert’s background. Chief Zibolski commented when the background check is completed they are looking at crimes or patterns of behavior that might lead to an inability to properly operate a liquor establishment. They also look at proximity to of the event to the date of application and the truthfulness of the applicant, were they forthcoming on the application. In this case, PD did not feel there was reason to deny the transfer. Tackett asked if there was concern over the most recent incident, Chief responded this incident occurred in another facility and he does not have concerns based on the incident itself. Nelson asked if the application were to own the license the felony would automatically disqualify him? Chief Zibolski responded under the current ordinance structure the felony goes back 10 years. There will be a proposal coming in the future to modify the guidelines to look at the totality of the applicant’s history.
Moved by Stibbe, seconded by Tackett to approve the transfer of the alcoholic beverage license issued to The Bowler, Inc. d/b/a The Bowler located at 2630 South University, transfer due to death of owner. Motion passed
C. Application for a transfer of a Class A alcoholic beverage license from African International Restaurant and Nightclub LLC d/b/a African International Restaurant and Nightclub to 518 Properties d/b/a 518 Properties to be located at 4554 7th Avenue South.
The ownership group requesting the transfer also owns the building, due to the hurried nature of this request, in order to meet the 30 day timeline established by the City Commission, a manager has not been named, nor has the business concept been determined and the business name needs to be established. Regarding the background checks; one case is 17 years old and another case from another State was dismissed. The Board emphasized once the manager is named and the concept is determined the applicant needs to bring these items back for review. Nancy Morris commented this case is a result of the revocation of a license that had been suspended pending the transfer of the license, in this case it would be appropriate to do a conditional transfer until the business concept and manager have been determined.
Moved by Tackett, seconded by Schwarzwalter to approve the transfer of the alcoholic beverage license from African International Nightclub and Restaurant LLC d/b/a African International Nightclub and Restaurant to 518 Properties LLC d/b/a 518 Properties to be located at 4554 7th Avenue South on the condition the business plan be brought back for review and the manager, once named, has a background check completed and brought to Liquor Control. Motion approved.
3. Chief Zibolski presented a list of compliance failures:
Commissioner Piepkorn commented if anyone wishes to speak to let the Board know.
Brew Bird; second failure in 18 months, served a 19 year old, employee was server trained. Moved by Schwarzwalter, seconded by Nelson to follow the matrix and apply the $750 penalty. Motion carried.
Cowboy Jacks; served an 18 year old, employee server trained, employee reviewed ID then served. Moved by Tackett, seconded by Schwarzwalter to follow the matrix and apply the $500 penalty. Motion carried.
Fargo Billiards; served a 19 year old, server did not look at ID, server trained. Moved by Schwarzwalter, seconded by Stibbe to apply the matrix and apply the $500 penalty
Fargo Brewing; served a 19 year old, server looked at ID and served anyway, server was trained. Moved by Stibbe, seconded by Schwarzwalter to apply the matrix and apply the $500 penalty. Motion carried.
Fort Knox; served an 18 year old, server not trained, looked at ID then served. Moved by Tackett, seconded by Schwarzwalter to follow the matrix and apply the $500 penalty. Motion carried.
Granite City; Server was server trained but did not check the ID. Moved by Schwarzwalter, seconded by Tackett to follow the matrix and apply the $500 penalty. Motion carried.
Hi Ho; served a 19 year old, Server not server trained, worker was under 21. Moved by Stibbe, seconded by Nelson to follow the matrix and apply a $500 penalty. Motion carried.
No Bull; served an 18 year old, server did not ask for ID, server was trained. Moved by Tackett, seconded by Schwarzwalter to follow the penalty matrix and apply a $500 penalty. Motion carried.
Olive Garden; served and 18 year old, did not check ID, server was trained. Moved by Schwarzwalter, seconded by Stibbe to apply the matrix and apply the $500 penalty. Motion Carried.
Chief Zibolski mentioned there were 41 compliance checks that night; 9 failures and 32 passing the test. Tackett mentioned this is concerning and it certainly is a lot of failures.
Chief Zibolski mentioned some locations could benefit by using a scanner, in some areas there was just a lack of effort in checking the ID’s. Minors know where to go to get served and we are not sending a strong message. Piepkorn commented the ND legislature reduced the penalty to minors; we need to be on the same page. Chief mentioned the change was from a misdemeanor to an infraction. This is an important issue for the safety of the minors and the public. It is important for everyone to understand we will continue to enforce this law. Schwarzwalter commented we need to strengthen the penalty matrix. Chief commented there are four important pieces we need to address:
• Technology, including not only use of scanners but also requiring video systems
• Application, updating the application for consistency and electronic availability
• Background check requirement for both new applications and very importantly for renewals
• Bouncers, requiring oversight, training, accountability
Schwarzwalter commented the matrix is too lenient, for instance, serving minor, first offense is $500 penalty but you can have 7 failures in an 18 month period before you could potentially lose your liquor license. Chief Zibolski agreed this section needs enhancement, if an offence is egregious enough perhaps a small suspension should be a possibility.
Chief Zibolski commented on the general report. The goal is improve the efficiency in reporting, through the use of technology they should be able to have better reporting in the future. The hopes is to be able to identify trends of certain businesses and patterns of behavior. We need to be able to provide notice to owners if there are action items.
Commissioner Piepkorn offered condolences to the Brandt family.
There being no further business to come before the Liquor Control Board, the meeting was adjourned at 2:09 p.m.