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Commissioners approve two liquor-license transfers to Matpak entities amid public concern over charitable-gambling ties
Summary
The commission approved two Class D liquor-license transfers to Matpak-related LLCs after a public hearing in which a resident questioned whether charitable-gambling proceeds are being used to buy bars and urged legal review; Matpak's representative said the LLC is separate from the nonprofit and that non-gaming funds and legal counsel were used.
Bismarck's City Commission voted unanimously to approve two transfers of Class D alcohol licenses to Matpak (MapPak) entities despite public concern about charitable-gambling money being used to purchase liquor establishments.
At a public hearing on the first transfer (Lucky's Bar), resident Kevin Sheebe said he opposed the transfer and questioned how charity-gambling proceeds were being used. He told commissioners the scale of charitable gambling in the state alarms him and said the original intent of the statutes was not to enable private ownership of bars by organizations linked to gambling proceeds. "This is not what the legislature intended," he said, urging review by the state attorney general.
City staff and the chair clarified the local role: the commission is asked to approve a transfer of an existing liquor license between entities and must follow state law that governs Class D licenses. Staff said applicant documents list officers (some personal information is redacted) and that a cap on Class D licenses is controlled by state code.
Jason Huber, who identified himself as MapPak board president, said Matpak LLC is a separate entity from the nonprofit and that the LLC is pursuing the purchases with legal and banking advice. "We don't want any bars as of right now," Huber said, adding that the LLC's funds come from registrations and tournaments and not from gaming trust money. Legal/staff comment at the hearing noted unrelated business income is taxable under state and federal law and that property-related taxes would apply if property were acquired.
After the public hearing and brief questions from commissioners about funding sources and tax treatment, the commission voted to approve the Lucky's Bar transfer and, later in the meeting, moved to approve a separate transfer for Main Bar and package store to MapPak Properties LLC. Both motions passed on unanimous roll-call votes.
The transcript shows concern from residents about the optics and possible statutory loopholes; commissioners and staff said that if the public wants policy changes, action would need to come through the state legislature. The commission's local action approved only the license transfers as framed by state law.
Next steps: staff will complete administrative processing of the transfers and Matpak communications said they were preparing additional public information.
