The Illinois Liquor Control Commission dismissed all but two happy hour violations during its first regional license disciplinary proceedings Wednesday at the Urbana City Hall.
Violations by Firehaus and Station 211 were not dismissed because the bars’ owner, Scott Cochrane, could not attend the meeting.
The commission dismissed the charges because there was too much confusion about what is and is not allowed during happy hour, said Steve Schnorf, acting chairman of the commission.
“It is not our intention to confuse people,” Schnorf said. “The bars understand the purpose of happy hour laws and want to abide by them. We don’t want to penalize them before there is clarification.”
Some owners were still unsure as to exactly why they were called to the hearing. Tracy Herbert, owner of Legends at 522 E. Green St., thought he was at the hearing for selling drinks at a reduced price during happy hour, until he found out it was for another reason: serving two or more drinks to one person who consumed both beverages.
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Herbert said he was still confused about the exact rules that have to be followed during happy hour.
“It’s hard for us to try to figure out what we can and cannot do when the hours are so ambiguous,” Herbert said.
The purpose of the meeting was not to confuse people but to help make things right, Schnorf said.
According to a press release, it is the goal of the commission to have better interaction with the state and increase awareness to stop underage and binge drinking.
“We have special interests in universities,” Schnorf said. “We know it is impossible to stop underage drinking but we want to make things a little more convenient to help stop the problems.”
In addition to commission members, owners of businesses in East Central Illinois that sell liquor were also in attendance. Twenty-three businesses from the Champaign, Urbana and Danville areas were represented.
While the happy hour violations against most Campustown bars were dismissed, charges leveled against liquor stores from around the area for selling to minors were enforced. At the hearing, business owners were given the opportunity to state their concerns and contest the allegations. Some owners admitted to offenses and paid fines, while others decided to attend a separate hearing at a time that is still to be determined.
