Mount Pleasant City Commissioners have broken ground in amending the city’s one-day liquor licensing policy.

During a work session Monday, city staff presented the commission with potential policy revisions. Discussion over where licenses would be permitted, what events would be granted a license and how those events would be contained, all resulted from staff recommendations.

As developed by the Downtown Development Board, the policy was originally suggested to make licenses accessible to events held any where downtown in order to attract more people to the Central Business District, located in downtown Mount Pleasant.

“I’ve had business owners downtown say that we don’t need alcohol to bring people downtown,” said Commissioner Sharon Tilmann. “However, I don’t want to preclude someone from applying for a one-day liquor license.”

Available locations for non-profits to obtain a one-day liquor license and hold an event on public property is currently limited to Island Park, 331 N. Main St., though some commissioners discussed support of eventually expanding the policy citywide.

Others advocated adding more location options in small steps, which Director of Public Safety Bill Yeagley said was within his comfort level because of a safety frame of reference in containing events that offer alcohol.

“While my comfort is pretty conservative, I think if we follow what has been laid out here so far in philosophy, that we’ll be well protected, that we won’t allow an event to occur in a location we feel is not safe for this community,” he said. “So it’s the details of the location that make it either work or not work. Not just the location, but the plan to take place in that location.”

Commissioners agreed to take applications for a licence on a case-by-case basis, but were split when it came to fees being required when an event is held out of compliance on public property. City staff recommended a change to in cash bond amounts from $1,000 to $5,000.

Though most matters were postponed to a future meeting, commissioners agreed the policy ought to lower the 90-day waiting period for an application to be approved to 60 days.

“I think taking longer than 60 days on anything is ridiculous,” said Commissioner Jeffrey Palmer. “It’s a long stretch.”

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E-mail the author: Jackie Smith