(A) A license is required. No person may directly or indirectly, on any pretense or by any device, sell, barter, keep for sale or otherwise dispose of alcoholic beverages as part of a sales transaction without first having obtained a license from the city.
(B) Licensing official. The City Administrator shall be the licensing official for the city. All applications for any license shall be made to the City Administrator.
(C) Council approval is required. No license or permit will be issued within the city without the prior approval of the City Council.
(D) Licenses and applications. Application for license may be made by any person by submitting to the City Administrator a written statement under oath, setting forth the name of the applicant, his or her address, owners of the applicant if other than a natural person, the business in connection with which the proposed license will operate, its location, whether or not the owner or owners were ever convicted of a crime and whether or not the applicant has ever applied for or held, in other communities, a license to sell or permit consumption on his or her premises of beer or intoxicating liquor, and other information as the Council may require from time to time.
(1) Each application for a license shall be accompanied by a receipt from the City Administrator for payment in full of the required fee for the license. All fees shall be paid into the general fund of the municipality. Upon rejection of any application for a license, the City Administrator shall refund the amount paid, less any costs for processing.
(2) Each application shall also be accompanied by a liability insurance policy. The liability insurance policy shall contain other and additional provisions as provided by M.S. § 340A.409, as it may be amended from time to time, or in lieu of the policy or policies, evidence from the insurance company or companies that coverage will be provided when the applicant begins business.
(3) The City Administrator shall investigate all facts set out in the application, including a consideration of the building with regard to zoning and building ordinances and the proximity of schools and churches and shall give opportunity to any person to be heard for or against the granting of the license, on request. After the investigation and hearing, the City Council shall grant or refuse the license in accordance with the provisions of this chapter.
(a) Licenses.
1. No license shall be granted to any person: under the age of 21 years of age; nor unless he or she be the actual owner or proprietor of the place of business where he or she intends to sell the intoxicating liquor or permit the consumption of intoxicating liquor; nor who already owns or has a direct or indirect interest in a license provided for in this chapter; nor who has been convicted of a felony; nor who is a manufacturer or wholesaler of beer or liquor or who is interested in the control of any place where beer or liquor is manufactured, except licenses may be granted for an entity that meets the definition of a brew pub as defined in M.S. § 340A.24.
2. It shall be a condition of every license that the licensee furnish the City Council with a list of all persons, firms or corporations having an interest in the licensed business and the nature and extent of the interest. If the licensee is a corporation, the list shall show all stockholders, their resident address and the number of shares held by each, either personally or beneficially for others. It shall be the duty of each licensee to notify the City Administrator in writing within five days of any change in legal ownership or beneficial interest in the business or the shares. Any change of address or beneficial interest or stock entitled to be voted at any meeting of the stockholders of a corporate licensee which results in voting control of the corporation by persons owning shares of stock therein shall be deemed equivalent to a transfer of the license issued to the corporation and any such license shall be revoked five days after any change of ownership or beneficial interest of shares unless the City Council shall have been notified of the change in writing within five days and shall have approved thereof. The City Council or any officer, designated thereby may, at any reasonable time, examine the stock transfer record and the minute book of any corporate licensee.
(b) Licenses after conviction or revocation. No license shall be granted for sale on any premises where a licensee has been convicted of the violation of this chapter or where any license hereunder has been revoked for cause until 30 days have elapsed after the conviction or revocation.
(E) Expiration date of licenses. All liquor licenses issued pursuant to this chapter shall expire on January 1 of each year.
(F) New license application procedures. An application for a new license may be submitted at any time. If an investigation fee is required, it must be paid in full and all required insurance certificates must be submitted with the application. Upon approval of the application, the annual license fee must be paid in full before the application will be forwarded to the state.
(G) Renewal of pre-existing permit or license. Pre-existing liquor license: all applications for renewal of a pre-existing liquor license shall be submitted on or before November 30 of the current year for a license taking effect on January 1 of the following year. All annual license fees for the following year shall be paid in full on or before December 20 of the current year.
(H) Transfer of a license due to change of ownership.
(1) Any change in ownership involving a license requires the submission of an application to transfer that license; a change of ownership requiring official transfer of a license occurs, as follows.
(a) If the licensee is a natural person, upon the sale of the business requiring the license or, upon the death of the licensee.
(b) If the licensee is a corporation, upon change in ownership of more than 10% of its stock.
(c) If the licensee is a natural person or a partnership, upon the addition of a new partner.
(2) An application to transfer a license shall be treated the same as an application for a new license. If the change in ownership is caused by the death of a licensee, then the personal representative is authorized to continue to operate the business for up to 90 days but must submit the application within 30 days of the date of death. In all other cases, the application must be submitted and approved by the Council before the sale of any alcoholic beverages can occur under the new ownership.
(I) Posting of licenses. All licensees shall conspicuously post their liquor license or permit in their places of business.
(J) Resident agent. Before a liquor license or set up permit will be issued, the applicant shall appoint in writing a natural person who is a resident of the city to act as its agent for service of notices or other process relating to the license. The agent must be a person who could qualify individually as a licensee.
(K) Additional restrictions on licenses. The Council may place upon a license such conditions or restrictions as it may deem necessary and justified.
(L) Police access. All licensed premises shall be open to inspection during business hours by any police officer. As a condition of receiving a liquor license, all licensees consent to the inspection, without a warrant.
(M) Payment of delinquent taxes or charges. No liquor license shall be granted for any premises upon which taxes, assessments or other financial charges of the city are delinquent and unpaid.
(N) Duplicate license. Duplicates of original licenses may be issued by the City Administrator without action of the Council, upon the licensee’s affidavit that the original has been lost and upon payment of the duplicate license fee.
(O) Notice posting. A premises licensed for the retail sale of alcoholic beverages must post and maintain in a conspicuous place within the licensed premises:
(1) One or more signs which read:
“THE MAXIMUM CRIMINAL PENALTY FOR DRIVING WHEN UNDER THE INFLUENCE OF ALCOHOL IS $1,000 OR 90 DAYS IN JAIL OR BOTH. M.S. §§ 169A.20/169A.27. THE MAXIMUM CRIMINAL PENALTY FOR CRIMINAL VEHICULAR HOMICIDE IS $20,000.00 OR TEN YEARS IMPRISONMENT OR BOTH. M.S. § 609.21.”
(2) One or more signs which read:
“THIS ESTABLISHMENT IS PROHIBITED BY LAW FROM SERVING ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGES TO A PERSON WHO IS UNDER 21 YEARS OF AGE OR OBVIOUSLY INTOXICATED. M.S. §§ 340A.502 AND 340A.503.”
(3) To the extent state statutes require alteration or adjustment of the signs noted in divisions (A) or (B) above, the provisions of amended state statutes shall govern and serve as an automatic amendment and alteration to this chapter.
(P) Reporting illegal conduct. Licensees and their employees shall report to the police all illegal conduct committed by customers occurring within the licensed premises. The report must be made within 24 hours of the occurrence and shall include the identity of the customer(s) and a description of the conduct.
(Ord. 208, passed 8-5-1996; Ord. 214, passed 1-5-1998; Ord. 271, passed 5-4-2009; Ord. 2017-02, passed 7-24-2017) Penalty, see § 10.99