A bill that would allow the city to sell alcohol in Memorial Auditorium and Tivoli Theatre could be killed today after legislators heard that Mayor Ron Littlefield opposed it, said state Sen. Andy Berke, D-Chattanooga.
“We have to decide as a group what we’re going to do,” Sen. Berke said Monday.
Members of the Hamilton County state delegation will meet this morning and make a decision on whether to continue to push a bill that would allow the Chattanooga City Council to decide if the two facilities can sell alcohol, Sen. Berke said. He said he received a call from Mr. Littlefield on Thursday in which the mayor said he did not want alcohol sold at the two locations.
CITY SUBSIDYChattanooga has been subsidizing Memorial Auditorium and Tivoli Theatre with hundreds of thousands of dollars for years, records show. The amount of subsidies over the last five years for both facilities were:* 2005: $536,774* 2006: $615,372* 2007: $624,135* 2008: $751,374* 2009: $642,391Source: Chattanooga government
Richard Beeland, spokesman for Mr. Littlefield, said Monday that the mayor was out of town. Mr. Beeland said the reason the mayor opposed it was because events “fueled” with alcohol could only create more problems for police and management.
He said Mr. Littlefield is also not convinced that selling alcohol at the auditoriums would bring a financial boon to the facilities.
Councilman Andraé McGary, who helped get the bill started in the Tennessee General Assembly, said Monday that he had not heard a definitive answer on what the delegation would decide today.
“That has me a little concerned,” he said.
He said one thing he did not want to see occur was that it turn into a “mayor versus council issue.”
Mr. McGary said he planned to push a resolution through the council today saying the body supported the General Assembly passing the bills. All nine council members signed a letter of support last week. When contacted Monday, the majority of council members said they supported the Tennessee Legislature allowing them to make the decision on alcohol sales at the facilities.
Most council members said something needs to be done considering the amount of money the city has pumped into the two auditoriums over the last several years. City records show that over the last five years the city has subsidized the auditoriums by hundreds of thousands of dollars.
Council Chairman Jack Benson said he thinks the council’s resolution will be approved unanimously. He said he would also want the council to have a shot at debating the measure.
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Article: Chattanooga: Council moves toward alcohol sales in Tivoli, Memorial