BROCK VERGAKIS Associated Press writer | Posted: Monday, January 22, 2007 12:00 am
PARK CITY, Utah - Utah has a lot of liquor laws that drive residents and tourists nuts.
The Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control chairman wants to change some of them, but most of the restrictions that give Utah its quirky image will remain the same.
In this resort town where most of the Sundance Film Festival is screened that means bartenders and wait staff will continue to receive quizzical looks from out-of-state customers. Each year, bar and restaurant owners worry that affluent tourists will decide against a return trip to Utah because of the difficulty getting something other than 3.2 percent alcohol beer; the required paid memberships to private clubs to get drinks with liquor in them; and the prohibition against serving "doubles," drinks with two shots of alcohol.
It's a very real concern in a state that's beginning to take tourism seriously, having increased its advertising budget by more than 1,000 percent in the past three years to $12 million.
"Here we are spending a whole ton of money and I want to make sure people come back and don't use (liquor laws) as an excuse not to come back," said Hans Fuegi, owner of the Grub Steak restaurant and member of the state tourism board. "We need to serve them correctly when they're here."
Tourism is a growing $5.8 billion industry in the state, and no segment is more important than people coming in search of powder-covered ski resorts. State research shows that among tourists, skiers stay longer and spend the most per day. For years, Colorado has dominated the market. But Utah is gaining steam and that has those who depend on tourism for their livelihood crossing their fingers that they'll be able to attract repeat visitors. Most acknowledge, however, state liquor laws could be an obstacle.
The primary complain from Fuegi and many others in the tourism industry is the state's law that designates bars serving liquor as "private clubs," requiring a paid short-term or long-term membership. It's not uncommon for many tourists to walk into a private club, be asked for a membership and then walk right out, they say.
Private clubs are open to anyone 21 and older. But the perception, bartenders say, is that tourists aren't welcome and getting a drink in Utah is a bureaucratic nightmare filled with paperwork that's not worth the effort.
"You'll see five guys walk in and they won't want to split a $5 temporary membership five ways. They'll go back to their hotel and drink there," said Davin Topel, a bartender at O'Shuck's on Park City's bustling Main Street. "I get a lot of complaints about the memberships. It's not friendly to tourists.
Gov. Jon Huntsman has made tourism in an important part of his economic development plan. In 2005, he said he was willing to look into repealing the membership requirement for bars. So when DABC chairman Larry Lunt, who doesn't drink, said last month he wanted to change some laws, hope rippled through the state's watering holes.
It was shortlived.
Lunt's plans to change state law extend only to permitting telephone directories to include a liquor store's address and phone number, along with some technical changes. Lunt said it's not his place to propose legislation affecting bars, even though the agency regulates them.
"We're not going to be leading out on changing whether there ought to be private clubs," Lunt said. "If the public wants to change that or the industry wants to change that, they can go to the Legislature."
Yeah, right, said Bob Brown, a downtown Salt Lake City bar owner and president of the Utah Hospitality Association. The Legislature is largely controlled by lawmakers who are members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, which prohibits its members from drinking alcohol and smoking. Utah typically ranks last among states for alcohol consumption in health and tax surveys.
Brown said bar owners feel "you can't beat city hall" when dealing with the Legislature, which began banning smoking in bars last year.
"I would have more respect for this state if they would just say, 'You know what, cigarettes and alcohol are bad. Therefore, they are totally illegal in the entire state of Utah,' " Brown said. "I would have more respect for that than all this dilly-dallying we do."
During the debate on banning smoking in the state's bars last year, several lawmakers said the state should study whether to keep the private club designation after learning they're not as private or exclusive as many residents imagine. But when the subject of studying liquor laws came up during the summer, lawmakers refused to consider it.
Standing outside the state liquor store - next door to a police substation - on Park City's main street, tourist Jonathan Hendrix, a 34-year-old financial analyst from Chicago, recently said Utah's liquor laws border on the absurd.
"Everyone warned me it was weird out here, but it's so much cheaper than skiing in Colorado," Hendrix said. "Having to buy real beer from the liquor store is kind of a pain and so is having to buy a membership to every bar you go to. But, I've still had fun. At least it gives me stories to tell when I go home."
At the No Name Saloon and Grill in Park City, manager Ron Wedis, who moved to Utah from Wisconsin three years ago, gets a grin on his face when asked which laws he'd like to see changed.
"I don't know where to start," he said. "A lot of them are stupid."
He says one that frustrates him is his inability to serve full-strength beer on tap, which often upsets out-of-state customers. Another is the prohibition against letting anyone under 21 into a private club. He said he has to turn up to 46 customers away daily during peak lunch periods because families can't bring their children in to get a hamburger. He said it's fine if children aren't allowed in at night, but people don't understand why they can't eat somewhere that looks more like a restaurant than a bar.
Fuegi, who used to run a private club, said that competition for tourism dollars is fierce and customers are fickle. If Utah wants to compete with states such as Colorado, it needs to think more about how it treats tourists and how word of their experience spreads.
"You want to make sure that little bit of experience doesn't tell them to go somewhere else," he said. "It can have an effect. … (State law) is not going to change overnight, but we just can't stop pushing it."
Leigh von der Esch, director of the Utah Office of Tourism, deflects questions about how liquor laws affect tourism by saying every state has its quirks and that her office does everything it can to tell tourists that they can get a drink here. But she acknowledges, however unfair it may be, there is a perception getting a drink in Utah is difficult. That can be a problem.
"Everyone's perception is their reality," she said.