Decorah City Council approves a different type of beer permit

The typical application for a City of Decorah beer permit comes from a tavern or a restaurant which serves beer as part of its business.

On Wednesday the Decorah City Council approved an application for a beer permit which will be used for a fundraiser for the Spectrum Network in Decorah.  The applicant for the beer permit--Mike Meirick through SNAP Marketing--says his plan is to set up outdoors at 405 College Drive before the remaining three Saturday Luther College home football games--this Saturday for Homecoming against Central College, Saturday, October 26th against the University of Dubuque; and Saturday, November 9th against Nebraska Wesleyan University.

City council members had questions about the application at first.  They were nervous about the proposed beer tailgating in the parking lot, but Meirick gave assurances the area would be fenced off and IDs would be checked.  Meirick also says there will be two portable toilets on site and the entrance to the parking lot would be barricaded.  He says the tailgating event would run for just two or three hours each Saturday, preceding the Luther football games.

Meirick says there will be food served--brats and hamburgers--at the events, as well as water and pop being sold.  He says all profits from the three events will be given to Spectrum Network, where he is working as the Interim Administrator.

Given those assurances, the Decorah City council voted 4-1 in favor of the permit, with Johanna Bergan voting against issuing the permit because of concerns about precedents.