Tuscaloosa council tables Duffel alcohol license amid questions about scooter delivery and age checks

The Tuscaloosa City Council on a unanimous vote tabled for one week two alcohol-license applications from Snack Men LLC, d/b/a Duffel, after council members said they needed staff to research legal and safety issues tied to the company's plan to use electric scooters for deliveries.

Charles Levis, the applicant, told the council his business operates from Parkview Center and provides on-demand delivery—similar to other campus delivery platforms—using electric scooters and primarily student employees. "We don't deliver any alcohol at this time, but we are trying to get our alcohol license so that we can deliver alcohol," Levis said, adding that the company's mobile app uses geofencing to block alcohol orders on University of Alabama campus addresses.

Officer Champion of the Tuscaloosa Police Department told the council the department had no objection to the application on file. Despite that, several council members signaled they were not ready to act. Council members raised questions about whether the scooters must be licensed for commercial deliveries, helmet and equipment safety, and how the company would verify customers' ages at the point of delivery. A council member asked staff to research the licensing and safety issues and requested a one-week tabling so those questions could be answered.

A motion to table the off-premises retail beer and retail table-wine applications for one week carried; the clerk recorded that both applications were tabled and staff would follow up with the applicant the next day.

The licenses at issue were listed in the city record as ABC application 25-056 (Snack Men LLC, d/b/a Duffel). The council did not make a final decision on the applications; the matter will return to a future meeting after staff reports back.