No Moratorium On Liquor Licenses; Parks Ballot Proposal Approved

Traverse City commissioners Monday declined to take action on a proposed moratorium that would have banned any new liquor licenses from being issued in the city on an interim basis.

Commissioners Brian McGillivary and Roger Putman suggested the moratorium, citing concerns over drunken behavior in the city and a desire to stop more establishments from coming online until the city could address alcohol-related issues. Mayor Jim Carruthers also echoed their concerns. However, a lack of support from other commissioners stalled out the proposal. A majority of the board said they believed existing establishments needed to be addressed rather than just banning new establishments, said they wanted to hear staff recommendations on addressing alcohol challenges, and desired to give a new community police officer assigned to downtown Traverse City time to improve the situation.

“I have faith in our police department,” said Commissioner Amy Shamroe. “I think that we are making good moves to get this moving along, and that the staff is working on very good solutions for longer term on this as well. So I think at this time that I don’t see a need for suspension (of licenses). I see a need to address the problems that we all seem to agree are already there.”

Commissioners Monday also approved ballot language to ask voters this fall to renew funding for parks projects. The vote will seek a renewal of the Brown Bridge Trust Parks Improvement Fund. The special fund was approved by residents in 2014 to use money from oil and gas royalties to pay for city park improvements. It expires this year, and the city will seek to renew it for another five years this fall – with a specific caveat in the ballot language that no single project will receive more than $250,000 from the fund, in order to benefit as many parks as possible.