Joliet reconsiders liquor sales at gas stations

Joliet will consider ending a partial ban on beer and wine sales at gas stations.

A proposed ordinance also would expand video gambling to gas stations that haven’t been able to get it and allow for on-site consumption of beer and wine.

The Joliet City Council Land Use and Legislative Committee will consider the proposal when it meets at 4 p.m. Wednesday.

The ordinance appears to be the consequence of a controversial deal approved in January 2020 giving a new Thorntons gas station at Collins and Jackson streets a liquor and gaming license in exchange for its financial contribution to the preservation of the 19th Century Casseday house.

Terry Lambert, owner of a longtime family Mobil station at Broadway and Theodore streets, sought the same license given to Thorntons. When he was denied, Lambert appealed to the Illinois Liquor Commission, which ruled in his favor.

“We’re trying to come to a mutually agreeable solution on that,” Assistant City Attorney Chris Regis said Monday.

The city has not yet provided a liquor license for Lambert’s station, Regis said, adding that Lambert “did win his appeal, so he’s going to have it in some form.”

The proposed ordinance is aimed at resolving the Lambert matter, he said.

The proposed ordinance would provide a Class CG license for gas station sales of packaged beer and wine at an annual fee of $1,500.

A proposed Class BG license would allow for consumption of beer and wine in conjunction on-site with video gambling along with sales of packaged beer and wine for an annual fee of $2,200.

“Any areas used for on site consumption must be separated from the remainder of the premises in such a manner so as to restrict access for those under 21 years of age; video gaming shall be restricted to such areas,” the proposed ordinance states.

Beer and wine sales now are prohibited at most Joliet gas stations with some exceptions, including the Mickey’s One Stop on Plainfield Road, which was grandfathered in at the time the ban was enacted in 1989, and a new Gas N Wash on the far West Side where beer and wine sales are allowed in a separated building with a separate address than the gas station.