Community and business leaders gathered Thursday to state their case against the Alcohol License Density Ordinance.
The ordinance, which was being discussed by the Alcohol License Review Subcommittee on Downtown Alcohol Issues and Ordinances, is due to expire in October.
However, committee members expressed interest in amending ALDO before that date.
The density plan was drafted in 2007 in response to a high number of alcohol-related problems in the downtown area and limits the number of liquor licenses available downtown.
""I think the intent [of the ordinance] was good, but it has ended up punishing everybody for the sins of a few,"" community member Rosemary Lee said.
The citizens who spoke at the meeting supported either amending the ordinance or allowing it to expire indefinitely.
""The economic conditions have changed quite a bit since ALDO went into place,"" Mary Carbine, executive director of Madison's Central Business Improvement District, said.
""The ALDO doesn't really have the flexibility to enable the property and business owners to adapt to the circumstances,"" she said
Many of the speakers took issue with a section of the ordinance that requires property owners to find a new tenant within 365 days of their previous tenant ceasing operations if they wish to retain their alcohol beverage license.
""The 365-day rule is sometimes enough time,"" Paul Muench of Urban Land Interests, a local real estate development firm, said. ""But more often than not it takes longer than that … 365 days in my world is a very brief amount of time.""
Speakers also expressed concern with a section of the density plan that requires applicants classified as an exceptional circumstance to have no more than 25 percent of their annual gross revenue come from the sale of alcohol.
""I've always been surprised by how Madison likes to limit its flexibility,"" Muench said.
—Grace Urban
