Cities help bars, restaurants with on-sale license fees

Byron and Kasson have decided to give bars and restaurants a break, by either waiving or rebating their 2021 on-sale liquor license fees. In other surrounding communities, the topic is on the minds of city leaders and they may follow suit.
“It’s meant to be a feel good initiative,” said Janna Monosmith, Byron Community Development Planner. The Byron City Council has approved waiving 2021 liquor license fees in an effort to help bars and restaurants that have had to shut down this last year due to executive orders from Gov. Tim Walz.
The Byron Economic Development Authority proposed the initiative, and then the city council approved it. Monosmith credits the EDA with “spearheading” the waiving of on sale liquor license fees. It’s a nearly $20,000 hit to the city, with liquor licenses adding up to $19,880, Monosmith said.
“We anticipated this was coming,” she said, “so it was removed from the budget. So we had already planned to not spend that money for 2021.”
The measure received unanimous approval from the Byron City Council.
“We knew businesses were being hit hard again, with the second round of shut downs,” Monosmith said. “They felt they wanted to do something.”
Ron Jensen, manager of the Byron Legion, said “it’s a nice story” of the city waiving their 2021 liquor license fees. Jensen said the timing was perfect, as the fee refund came at the same time as his business insurance was coming due.
All together, the Byron city council’s measure saved the Legion $2,840, Jensen said.
“It’s enormous,” he said, “that money saved by not having to pay the fees. I didn’t have to come up with that and the insurance payment, which would have been a struggle because they’re due on the same day and together is about $5,000. So now I can pull through here. I’ll have enough to swing it.”
In Kasson, the city council approved refunding 100 percent of on sale liquor license fees for 2021. Those paying for a license will get all of their costs refunded.
Kasson City Administrator Tim Ibisch said the council’s reasoning was similar to Byron’s. “The city council felt the governor’s shut down had oversized effects on bars and restaurants,” Ibisch said. “We wanted to support them as much as possible.” For Kasson, it’s about $2,500 in lost revenue.
In Dodge Center, the city council will discuss following suit. “Right now, one way or another, the city council hasn’t saId if this is something they want to do,” said Dodge Center City Administrator Joshua Tetzlaff. “Options are being put out there.”
The same goes for West Concord, where City Administrator Mike Plante said “We haven’t had that specific discussion, but I plan on discussing it with our city council during its meeting on Feb. 18. It is on our radar to discuss.”
In Byron, the push for waiving fees was made by the EDA, said Monosmith and Chris Ryan, chairperson of the Byron EDA. “I think Rochester did it first,” he said. “if I remember correctly. We were looking at different ways to help the businesses in town. There’s only a few things we can do as the EDA.”
The end goal, he said, was to assist struggling businesses in town.
 
“Certain businesses haven’t been allowed to stay open or been reduced in allowing people in so we were just looking for ways to help them out,” Ryan said. “It’s desperately needed. We want people to say in business in town and so the community tries to support them in as many ways as it can.”