Utah’s liquor laws have historically been strict, and in this case where you can and can’t locate a bar. Our current laws require that any bar, liquor store or restaurant that serves alcohol must be located at least 600 feet from a park, school, or place of worship. These kind of laws aren’t specific just to our state. Drinking in public is often restricted in coastal areas in the country-not on beaches and nearby parks. Golden Gate Park allows you to drink while enjoying the views of the bridge and bay. Florida doesn’t like drinkers (especially the Spring Breaker type), except on the Tampa Riverwalk. Louisiana has adopted policies permitting public consumption in designated areas, especially during festivals and special events. New Orleans have ‘open container’ zones as does Nevada and places there like the Las Vegas Strip.

I remember back in the 1980’s the Park Café wanted a liquor license. The owner applied at the time and was rejected because it was across the street from a public park, and the rule was that it couldn’t be 600 feet or closer to the public space. After much deliberation a helpful change was made, in that the ‘official’ entrance for Liberty Park was not on the south end of the park, but the north end. And thus, a liquor license was granted with the new entrance designation which was far across the park.

There’s a new bill at our Legislature that was submitted last week that would redefine how close a hotel bar/restaurant that serves liquor could be to a public park. The 600 ft. walking distance rule (or 200 feet in a straight line) would have an exception that would allow a local city to waive the rule for how close alcohol could be served by a park. The reason for this is simple: Magnus Commercial Properties has asked Salt Lake City to allow liquor at the proposed hotel they are planning in Sugar House at the location of the old Sizzler restaurant site on 2100 South and 1300 East.

Having owned a bar several years ago, I can say that the State Liquor Commission was very helpful when I applied for a license but damn, the rules for a business who wants to serve booze are massive. Of course, you can’t drink under the age of 21and must report the measurement of liquor in each drink sold, and the accounting can be a nightmare to tally what and how much was sold each day.

I rarely drink these days. I like to say I drank so much in college I forgot what I had learned and so I had to go back and get another degree after the first four years! I see no problem with a hotel bar offering drinks to its patrons of age, and it would be nice to sit on a patio and look out onto the park and our scenic mountain vistas. This Legislative session is over March 6^th, so we’ll see what happens.