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Council hears status update on revitalization district and D5L liquor licenses
Summary
Attorney Zellers and Mayor Cindy Dickey told council the revitalization district has approval for up to 15 D5L licenses; individual businesses can apply now but a separate ballot measure would be required to make the district broadly 'wet' (allowing Sunday sales or full liquor privileges) without site‑specific votes.
City Attorney Zellers told the Salem City Council on March 4 that a revitalization district approved Jan. 10 allows up to 15 D5L licenses within the district. "A D5 license is a license from 05:30AM to 02:30AM... and we can have up to 15 in that district," he said, and noted the Department of Commerce has provided the mechanism for businesses to apply.
Zellers and Mayor Cindy Dickey explained the D5 license is distinct from a vote to make an area "wet" or to allow Sunday sales. Zellers said businesses could apply for D5 licenses now without further city action, and that a city ballot issue could be used to make the entire revitalization district wet — for example, to permit Sunday sales across sites — so that each business would not need a separate site‑specific ballot issue.
Councilmembers asked how the D5L license is structured. Zellers said the license typically requires a qualifying level of food sales or an entertainment use (for example, theaters or stadiums) and cited around a 70% food‑sales threshold for restaurants. He also noted licenses would be tied to the revitalization district and could not be transferred outside the district if an establishment relocated.
Disagreement arose on whether a citywide ballot question, if defeated, would block the D5 licenses — Zellers clarified that rejecting a separate ballot issue would only defeat that specific ballot question (for example, expanding Sunday sales), and it would not prevent businesses from obtaining a D5 license under the department rules. He also noted that ballot issues can be site‑specific or district‑wide and that a strategic approach may be preferable to a blanket question.
No formal council action or vote on a ballot referral occurred at the meeting; councilmembers asked for legal research on how to proceed if they want to pursue a ballot measure to change wet/dry rules for the revitalization district.
