Beer garden in question

At a special meeting, lasting only five minutes, the Moorcroft Town council entertained the second reading of the 2020/2021 budget and held further discussion of the viability of a beer garden run by Moorcroft Area Chamber of Commerce (MACC) at this year’s Jubilee.

Clerk/Treasurer Cheryl Schneider ascertained that, in fact, an entity or individual does not have to have an actual liquor license with the state to acquire a 24-hour malt beverage license with allowance from the county or municipality, allowing the application of the chamber for the beer garden.

However, not all of the council approved this function for a couple of reasons, one of which was explained by Councilman Ben Glenn.

“I’m against this. If the bars sell the alcohol, the town makes the tax money, but if the chamber does, there is no tax money to be made [because] they buy it from Metz Beverage,” he said.

The second issue was the manner of contact between chamber members and the town’s bars. Councilman Dale Petersen explained that he had been under the impression from the conversation at the last meeting, “They had been approached [and] there wasn’t any cooperation.”

This was not, in fact, the case, according to the bar owners upon further enquiries by the council. With that said, though, chamber member Nancy Feehan, attending on behalf of the MACC, told the body that letters had been sent out to all businesses seeking donations for Jubilee.

Thus, Petersen suggested that, before the council votes on the application, MACC President Neal Gray personally approach these business owners who will be affected by this decision and the town will also invite said owners to the next meeting of the council on Monday evening, June 22, at 7 p.m. to make their position known. Mayor Dick Claar and Glenn agreed.