Limited Availability of Liquor Licenses May Impact Business Development in Logan | New
LOGAN — As the city of Logan completes legislation for its designated outdoor refreshment area, the role of liquor and restaurants in revitalization has become part of the public debate.
However, due to state law limiting the number of liquor licenses available in the city, some businesses may be reluctant to operate in Logan.
At a meeting of the Logan City Council in June, the owner of a local business (Hocking Hills Winery and the next 58 West restaurant) and Downtown Logan President Drew Davidson spoke to the council in support of a DORA, but also discussed Ohio’s liquor laws.
“Speaking of the theatre, it was brought to our attention, unfortunately this morning, that a potential tenant that we were going to have in the theater has to bail out because they are unable to obtain a liquor license,” said said Davidson on June 14. “They were hoping to open a retail wine store and tasting bar. Due to (outdated) Ohio liquor laws, in a rural place like Logan, there are only a limited number of licenses to drive around.
DORAs were established under state law in 2017 and serve as a reprieve from open container laws; they allow, within a designated neighborhood, people of drinking age to carry beverages in designated cups from bar to bar (Designated and Authorized DORA Bars).
More than 100 municipalities in Ohio have DORAs, according to the Stateincluding nearby Athens, Chillicothe, Circleville, Lancaster and Somerset.
Davidson said a wine bar in the theater would likely be a hit in Logan, if it were possible – but he also expressed concerns about other potential establishments in the city, given his permit quota. limited alcohol.
“I am also concerned about the various restaurants that come to downtown if they are unable to obtain a liquor license for their establishment. I mean, alcohol (plays) a huge role in the restaurant business,” Davidson told the council. “Fortunately for us with our manufacturers license we will be fine, but I am worried about the next restaurants that have tried to go down as they won’t be able to have that appeal in their businesses. I think that’s a big chunk missing. “
The city has been discussing the creation of a DORA for about a year, according to previous reports from Logan Daily News.
As last reported by The Logan Daily News in February, the four businesses participating in Logan’s DORA will be Pizza Crossing, 58 N. Mulberry St., Shamrock Irish Pub, Maya Burrito Co., 12 E. Main St. and Hocking Hills Moonshine. , 55 S. Spring St. It is proposed that DORA be six days a week, 12 hours a day.
1st Ward Councilwoman Judie Henniger said in a text message Wednesday that Logan’s DORA will appear before council at its next meeting on Tuesday, July 9.
With one license class at full capacity and another in the negative, new businesses in the county may struggle to obtain some Ohio liquor licenses.
According to Ohio Department of Commerce, in Ohio, some liquor licenses are issued under a “quota-based” system, meaning that in a particular tax district, only a certain number of license types can be issued; the number of permit types available in a tax district is determined by a population-based formula (based on State Law). Hocking County has 23 tax districts, according to the Hocking County Auditor’s website.
According to United States Census Bureau, Logan has a 2020 population of 7,296. As of July 11, the city had a total of 37 permits issued (of various types).
And while some types of permits have room to grow, others have reached capacity.
According to Ohio Department of CommerceLogan issued eight of the eight possible C-1 permits, which are for take-out beer licenses until 1 a.m. (all C-permits are for retail stores).
Near capacity are C-2 permits in Logan, eight of which are possible and seven have been issued. C-2 permits are for carrying wine and prepackaged mixed drinks until 1 a.m.
Another class of permit that has reached capacity is D-1, which is for on-site/take-out beer until 1 a.m. This permit is for retailers, restaurants and bars; and is state-defined as “Beer only for consumption on the spot or in original sealed containers for take-out only until 1:00 a.m.”
Four of the four D-1 permits have been issued to Logan, meaning there are no more permits available.
With respect to D-2 permits, which the state defines as (similar to D-1) for “Wine and mixed beverages to be consumed on the premises or in original sealed containers for take-out only until 1:00 a.m. “, Logan has a D-2 allow quota of four.
However, five D-2 permits were issued, leaving the city with -1 available, according to a status report generated July 11. There is a D-2 license application on file.
According to Department of Liquor Control spokesman Brandon Klein, “the (over-issuance) of an applicable liquor license in a particular municipality could have been caused by a drop in population or the reactivation of a license by order of the Liquor Control Board or court order.”
A DORA would have no impact on Logan’s quota-based liquor licensing system, Klein added.
Logan has reached his J-3 license capacity; four out of four possible. There is, however, an additional D-3 license application on file. D-3 permits, per the Department of Commerce, are for “Alcohol spirits for consumption on premises only until 1:00 a.m.”
As for Logan’s D-3A permits, which use D-3 permit privileges to extend hours to 2:30 a.m. (an existing D-3 permit is required), three are available, but only one has been issued.
Logan has also reached capacity for his D-4 and D-5 permits, for which both have four permits and four issued.
D-4 permits permit “beer and any intoxicating liquor to members only, for consumption on the premises only until 1:00 a.m.” and D-5 permits permit “spirits for consumption on the premises only, beer, wine and mixed drinks for consumption on the premises, or outside in the original sealed containers, until 2:30 a.m.
As of August 1, there are two Applications at D-5 in Logan’s file. As previously reported, Logan has four D-5 permits issued out of a possible four, for the consumption of spirits, beer, wine, and mixed beverages on-site until 2:30 a.m.
The first D-5 permit application, filed in July 2021, is for Chef Moe’s on the Go LLC, for 11 W. Main St. (owned by Hocking County CIC, according to the auditor’s website). 11 W. Main St. is located in Tax District 04 (City of Logan), and according to the state, Chief Moe’s needs a population increase of 705 for its license.
Another is for Voltolini’s LLC, filed last June, for a location at 12762 Gray St. (owned by Buffalo Properties, LLC). According to the state, Logan needs a population boost of 2,705 for a permit at Voltolini.
However, there may be a response to companies that cannot obtain permits due to the quota system; According to the Ohio Division of Liquor Control, Transfer for economic development was developed by state law to “try to assist areas of the state that have over-licensing in TREX moving them to another area of the state.”
In summary, TREX allows liquor license applicants who cannot obtain a license when none is available and gives them “the option of then trying to TREX transfer the ownership and location of someone’s license to you. ‘another’, as long as the TREX requestor satisfies TREX conditions.
Chef Moe herself (Maureen Michaels) told the Logan Daily News that she doesn’t know whether or not her business will get a liquor license.
“I applied, and I know there have been other people who have applied — but yeah, I’m not totally sure how it’s going to go,” Michaels said.
However, the lack of a liquor license will not deter Chef Moe from opening her business in downtown Logan. Will the business still be open, he was asked, without the ability to serve spirits, beer, wine and mixed drinks?
“Oh yeah; sure,” Michaels said.
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