Council refers three liquor‑license complaints to June 11 public hearing

A city staff member told the Superior Common Council on June 2 that the administration will not renew several alcohol and tobacco retail licenses tonight and asked the council to send three complaints to a contested hearing before the License and Fees Committee.

The council unanimously voted to set a public hearing for Thursday, June 11, at 10:00 a.m., and to refer all three complaints to that committee. "We cannot answer questions about those complaints ... what we're going to do is a two‑part process," the staff member said, urging the council to protect due process for businesses that may be represented by counsel.

The staff member said the city clerk had filed two complaints and police command staff had filed a third; the committee will hear evidence from city officers and the businesses and will have legal counsel available to draft a recommendation for the council. "They will have the opportunity to be represented, to make arguments," the staff member said.

The administration also described part one of the process: a list of licenses it plans to recommend for renewal at the next regular council meeting. Councilors were invited to refer any license on that list to the public hearing if they believed further review was warranted. Councilor Moffett moved to set the hearing; Councilor Graskki seconded the motion, which carried by voice vote.

Next steps: the License and Fees Committee will conduct the contested hearing on June 11 and produce a recommendation for the council, which will take final action at a subsequent regular meeting.