KC Restaurant Insider Calls Out Vague 5 A.M. Booze Service Rules

Today we want to share yet another glimpse at how local government FAILS workers and small biz owners. 

KANSAS CITY RESTAURANT INSIDER EXPOSES SCANT DEETS FROM CITY HALL REGARDING RULES FOR 5 A.M. BOOZE SERVICE!!!

Actually . . .

Some denizens of the comments called this out last week but right now we have INSIDER PERSPECTIVE on the hot mess in the making as Mayor Q's demands for a security plan don't provide many specifics with less than a month to go. 

Here's the word . . . 

My concern is less about whether 5 a.m. service is good policy and more about the lack of a clear, timely process for businesses that are expected to comply.

The governor signed the bill allowing 5 a.m. alcohol sales during the World Cup in July of last year. Nearly 10 months passed before city officials publicly indicated those might not be the rules Kansas City businesses would actually operate under. Now businesses have been given a 15-day deadline to submit security plans, but with several days already gone, there still does not appear to be clear public guidance on what those plans need to include, who will review them, what the approval process is, or how decisions will be made.

Most bars and restaurants considering this option are not planning to stay open until 5 a.m. every night it is available. For many operators, the issue is flexibility. It means not having a hard 3 a.m. cutoff where staff have to pull drinks from guests at 2:59 a.m. or risk jeopardizing a liquor license. Kansas Citians may be used to the city’s unusual mix of 1:30 a.m. and 3 a.m. liquor licenses, but that will not be intuitive to visitors, especially international visitors dealing with language barriers and incomplete information about what the law allows.

I am not saying the 5 a.m. law was a good idea. I may not have supported it if I were weighing in last summer. But I do think businesses deserve rules that are fair, equitable, timely, and transparent. Whatever position someone takes on late-night alcohol service, it is reasonable to expect municipal government to provide clear requirements, a public process, and enough time for affected businesses to comply.

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