Ottawa takes step to liquor licensing overhaul

The Ottawa City Council took a step toward the overhaul and revamping of all of its liquor licensing at Tuesday’s meeting, outlining what license holders can expect in the way of consequences for whatever violations they may commit.

At the request of Mayor Robb Hasty, the council approved an amendment to the city’s municipal code regarding the escalating penalties for such violations. That would provide what the mayor said is “not only a path for whoever is making the decision (on the severity of the penalty), but for the holder of the license to have some idea of what to expect if they were to be in violation.”

“What we did [Tuesday],” Hasty said, “was more in regard to after they have a license, if there’s a violation, it outlines a procedure for the liquor commissioner to follow. … It will explain why, for example, why this guy got a $1,000 fine and this guy got a ticket. This is why.

“It will help to allow for some equity and consistency, and keep us moving away from precedent because saying, ‘This is what was done last time, let’s do that again,’ that can get hairy really quick.”

The move was just the beginning of an overhaul of Ottawa’s liquor licensing process that Hasty hopes to have completed before City Clerk Shelly Munks has to issue new licenses next spring.

The mayor said the liquor license procedures have been changed periodically as needed, but there comes a time, he said, when “it has too many Band-Aids on it, it’s better to just throw it out and start over.”

“What we’ll be doing will involve the overall procedures, qualifications and everything that goes into how you get a license – what we’re looking at, to modernize it, revamping it I guess is the best way to describe it,” Hasty said. “There are some things in there that cause confusion and allows for there to be loopholes depending on how people are using those licenses.

“We’re looking at streamlining the different types of licenses that we issue, the amounts that we have, all of that. … We started that almost a year ago, and we will have it ready by March or April of next year.”

Hasty also made a number of appointments and reappointments to the city’s Special Events Committee, all of which have terms that will expire Sept. 1, 2026.

Reappointed after expired terms were Rich Crum, Mike Dougherty, Jani Eichelkraut, Candy Moore and Jim Reilly, while reappointed with their terms not yet expired were Dan Eilts, Lucas Hennenfant and Robin Wilson.

New appointees to the committee are Randi Paquette, Audrey Miller and Ron Lambert.

Also approved was the appointment of Heather Pursley to the Fine Arts Committee, replacing Ryan Wotherspoon.

Also approved by the council was a performance contract to have the Jesse White Tumblers entertain Saturday, Sept. 29, during the annual Fall Festival Parade.

“They did such a terrific job last year, and it was so much fun,” Commissioner Wayne Eichelkraut said. “They were great. The parade will be excellent, so come and enjoy it.”

In other action, the council:

• opened and, with no public comment to be heard, closed a hearing regarding the annexation of three properties in Oak Terrace. It later approved the annexations.
• approved an agreement with SRF Consulting Group regarding North Central Area Transit’s strategic plan.
• authorized a community solar bill purchase credit agreement with Engie Distributed Renewables Development LLC, which Eichelkraut said when completed and online would provide a 10% discount of electricity use in city-owned buildings.