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By Sara K. Satullo | For lehighvalleylive.com and Connor Lagore | For lehighvalleylive.com
With the temperature dropping outside and indoor dining shut down for the near future, the holidays have become dire for many of the Lehigh Valley’s restaurants and bars, even more so than the last nine months already have been.
When Bethlehem’s city council met last week, one idea was floated that could ease the pain just a little bit — open container legality. However, the proposition that would allow adults to drink alcoholic beverages in public places didn’t seem to pick up much traction.
A couple of days before Gov. Tom Wolf mandated a state-wide shutdown of indoor dining, among other things, City Councilman Brian Callahan sent a memo to his fellow city council members proposing an indefinite suspension of the city’s open container laws in Bethlehem’s downtown business district. “We need to find a way to help our restaurants and small businesses thrive not only during the Christmas season, but for the foreseeable future,” he said in the meeting.
During last Tuesday’s meeting, Callahan said relaxing the law won’t solve all the problems bars and restaurants face, “but I think it could generate enough money for them to survive the winter.”
“Our downtown businesses are drowning as I’m sure you guys are all well aware,” said Rachel Griffiths, owner of Apollo Grill, who called into the meeting. “Anything that can be done on the city of Bethlehem’s part to rescue us from what is happening to our city would be greatly appreciated.”
Griffiths said the prospect of being able to purchase a to-go cocktails while shopping downtown would appeal to customers and provide some relief to the restaurants.
Neville Gardner, longtime owner of Donegal Square and the Red Stag Pub, as well as the chairman of the Downtown Bethlehem Association, also called into the meeting. While he acknowledged that a second round of small business grants would help, it’s clear that it’s not enough.
“I personally laid off three quarters of my staff on Friday, right before Christmas,” Gardner said. “I was in tears, and I’m not really sure what I can do to fix this. I think anything that the city could do would be helpful” After 35 years in retail and 17 as a restauranteur, Gardner said 2020 has been the most difficult year by far.
During the meeting, Callahan referenced another memo, this one sent out by Mayor Robert Donchez mere hours beforehand that rebuffed the idea of relaxing the law. In it, the mayor doubted his authority to actually institute the proposition, and even questioned its effectiveness: “It is debatable whether the proposal would actually help the businesses,” he wrote.
“If you think relaxing the containers is not going to help I would say, think again, because I think anything the city can do would be helpful,” Gardner said during the meeting.
Donchez closed his memo leaving the proposition up to City Council, which ran into some confusion toward the end of the meeting. Callahan had hoped the change was one the council could make that evening, but City Council Solicitor Jack Spirk noted that, in order to vote, the proposition would have to be in writing, though Callahan had sent a memo days earlier.
“I didn’t understand that you were looking for a vote,” Spirk said. “I thought you were merely seeking to get expressions of encouragement to have the mayor take a certain action.”
“An option of changing our ordinance would require a written change, a motion and a second,” said Council President Adam Waldron. “That’s not something we can do under new business in one evening.”
In his memo, Donchez brought up the potential of finding a festival or special event sponsor to obtain a special occasion permit from the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board and a City of Bethlehem permit to close streets.
Council members Grace Crampsie Smith and Olga Negrón both vouched for the relaxation of the law, with Crampsie Smith suggesting some sort of winter carnival and Negrón referencing the leniency shown to Musikfest’s beer mugs.
While the special occasion permit is possible, the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board told lehighvalleylive.com that the matter was out of their jurisdiction.
Donchez said during the meeting that there were reservations about legalities and precedent that came with relaxing the law.
The meeting came to an end without a resolution on Callahan’s proposal, but for small businesses like Griffiths’ Apollo Grille, the matter of getting some sort of relief remains as urgent as ever.
“Please, we are begging you” Griffiths told council. “We are asking for your help.”
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