The Sangamon County Board opted
not to allow for more public comment and instead voted 21-5 on April 8 to
eliminate 3 a.m. liquor licenses for bars in unincorporated areas outside
Springfield and other municipalities.
The decision will affect four taverns with 3 a.m. liquor licenses,
effective July 1, and will require those establishments, if they choose to
renew their licenses this summer, to stop serving alcohol at 1 a.m. There are
18 bars in unincorporated areas currently that have licenses to remain open
until 1 a.m.
The city of Springfield has 10 or more bars holding 3 a.m.
licenses, and Springfield Ward 9 Ald. Jim Donelan said city officials have
talked with county officials about whether the city’s 3 a.m. licenses should be
eliminated, but no action by the Springfield City Council is imminent.
Neither Springfield Mayor Misty Buscher nor Springfield Police
Chief Ken Scarlette could be reached for comment.
Before the board’s final decision, a proposal to delay a final decision at least a month failed on a vote of 8 to 17. An alternative proposal to make closing time 2 a.m. rather than 3 a.m. failed on a vote of 7 to 19.
The sponsor of the resolution to do away with the county’s 3 a.m. liquor license category, Cathy Scaife, told Illinois Times that the County Board’s liquor committee, which she chairs, studied the issue for months.
She said the committee recommended the action because “through the
years, the seriousness” of violent incidents at or near the 3 a.m. bars “has
increased” and requires significant time for county sheriff’s deputies to keep
the peace.
Scaife, a Republican who represents District 29 and lives near New
Berlin, told the board, “I ask for support for all of our deputies.”
However, Jacksonville resident Chad Turner, a part-owner of The Cove, told the board before the vote that he questioned the evidence cited by Scaife and other 3 a.m. license opponents. The Cove, 1616 N. Dirksen Parkway, is one of the four 3 a.m. bars affected.
He said 3 a.m. license holders should be given time to comment on
the data and present their views to the board.
The quick consideration by the full County Board after the Liquor
Committee’s March 20 vote “is not necessarily good public policy,” he said.
Turner said the County Board may be opening itself up to lawsuits.
He said the Sangamon County liquor law doesn’t allow current 3 a.m. license
holders to be stripped of those licenses if the board eliminates the 3 a.m.
license category.
Sangamon County State’s Attorney John Milhiser, who advises county
government officials, disagreed, saying the board’s decision was legal.
Turner said “some establishments will close” because of the board
action. He wouldn’t comment after the meeting.
The five board members who voted against eliminating 3 a.m.
licenses were Sam Cahnman, a Springfield Democrat representing District 18; Tim
Krell, a Springfield Republican representing District 15; Gina Lathan, a
Springfield Democrat representing District 22; Tom Madonia Jr., a rural
Rochester Republican representing District 9; and James Schackmann, a
Republican from unincorporated Gardner Township representing District 11.
“I think we’re making a huge mistake,” Madonia said before the
vote. “I don’t see the huge rush. I personally think we’re doing a disservice
to the public.”
He, Krell and Schackmann said bar owners shouldn’t be punished for
the actions of a few patrons.
“We’re changing the rules for productive members of society,”
Schackmann said.
Lathan said she would like to see the issue studied further.
“These incidents happen at 1 a.m. also,” she said.
Cahnman said he is concerned that people leaving 1 a.m. bars and
want to continue to drink would go to impromptu, or “pop-up” parties that can
be harder for police to monitor. He proposed the compromise 2 a.m. closing time
amendment that failed.
But board member Linda Douglas-Williams, a Springfield Democrat
representing District 20, said she worries about the safety of sheriff’s
deputies who have to respond to late-night incidents at 3 a.m. bars.
Board member Marc Ayers, a Springfield Democrat representing
District 12, said he voted for the elimination of 3 a.m. licenses because his
constituents were “overwhelmingly supportive of the 1 o’clock license” and
because he understands their concerns about public safety.
However, he said he “didn’t like the process” because 3 a.m.
license holders weren’t notified and given a chance to speak to the Liquor
Committee before it recommended the change.
Ayers said he is one of the younger board members. “I remember my
20s well,” he said. “I had a lot of fun at these 3 o’clock bars, lots of fun,
and I didn’t get into any trouble at all.”
Scaife said her committee
“worked very hard” on the issue, and most owners of the 3 a.m. licenses were
aware that the committee was considering recommending an end to 3 a.m.
licenses.
The board’s vote doesn’t interfere with the county’s ability to
grant temporary 3 a.m. liquor licenses for special events, board chairperson
Andy Van Meter said.
The board previously allowed bowling alleys in unincorporated
areas to hold liquor licenses to serve alcohol until 2 a.m., but there are no
such establishments that have those 2 a.m. licenses. The board’s vote also does
away with the option of 2 a.m. licenses at bowling alleys.
Dean Olsen is a senior staff writer at Illinois
Times. He can be reached at 217-679-7810,
[email protected] or twitter.com/DeanOlsenIT.
