File photo by Donna Agusti Brady Malony of Clinton Township and Bradley Cooper of Troy were among the many who packed downtown Royal Oak bars and restaurants for Game 7 of last year’s Stanley Cup Finals. City leaders continue to discuss the controversial topic of allowing the transfer of additional liquor licenses into the city.

By Jeremy Carroll
C & G Staff Writer

ROYAL OAK — Months after voters overwhelmingly shot down a proposed ban on the transfer of liquor licenses into the city, officials approved the transfer of an outside liquor license into Royal Oak for the third time since the vote.

The Royal Oak City Commission last week approved the transfer of a liquor license into the city for Midtown Parthenon, a Greek restaurant to be located 112 S. Main St. The building and prospective restaurant is owned by Leo Stassinopoulos, owner of Leo’s Coney Island, located directly to the north of the proposed new restaurant.

While several commissioners praised the unique nature of the restaurant, others voiced their concerns about being able to pay for police runs that occur at establishments that serve liquor.

The approval was made 4-3 on Jan. 25, with Mayor Jim Ellison and commissioners Pat Capello, Terry Drinkwine and Dave Poulton voting for it, while Jim Rasor, Chuck Semchena and Mike Andrzejak opposed it.

“This is exactly the type of development we need in Royal Oak,” Drinkwine said. “They put their money where their mouth is.”

Stassinopoulos put more than $1 million worth of improvements into the building, which formerly housed a bar named Rumors.

“It’s a good concept that will continue with the diversification of Royal Oak,” Poulton said.

The Police Department, as its has for many years, opposed the transfer of a license into the city, citing man-power concerns. Semchena and Andrzejak agreed, as they have tended to do on this issue in the past.

“This is the one type of business that consumes the most public services,” Semchena said after the meeting. “And our budget can’t support it. We are going to be losing police officers (with potential budget cuts).”

Is city over-saturated with bars, restaurants?
According to the state’s liquor control commission, there are 43 active liquor licenses in the city, and there are approvals for Lockhart’s BBQ, Emagine Theatre and Midtown Parthenon now waiting to open. There are four licenses currently in escrow, making a total of 50 licenses in play for the city.

Two of the licenses currently in escrow were recently nearly turned into bar/restaurants, but both developments, Bar Louie and Pub 526, have fallen through.

The state has a quota system for licenses, which is suggested at one liquor license for every 1,500 residents. According to the 2000 census, the city has a quota of 40 licenses. The population is expected to decline under the new census conducted this year.

Jeffrey Horner, a professor of urban planning from Wayne State University, said continuing to approve restaurants with bars above the state quota is not supported by academic research.

“It’s a difficult position to be in if you are city leader and if the choice is restaurant with a Class C liquor license or no development,” he said.

Horner, a Royal Oak resident, said the best and most common use of downtown space is for office and that as a purely economic issue, the restaurants with liquor licenses draw police resources and cost the city more money than similar retail or office space.

“Bars and restaurants are a necessary evil when you are attempting to make yourself a destination, but there becomes a time when you reach a saturation level,” he said.

Horner said he believes that saturation point is the state quota limit and said smart planning could include holding out for office uses in some buildings.

Tommy Dorr, owner of Lost and Found Vintage on Washington Avenue, said he would like to see more bistro-concept restaurants opening up.

“I think the city is set up more for restaurants, especially with rent the way it is,” he said.  “Personally, I think there are enough bars and restaurants downtown.”

The city has begun to grant bistro licenses to smaller restaurants with a limit on the number of seats in the facility and hours they are open. Café Muse, not far from Dorr’s store on Washington, was the first establishment to receive a bistro license late last year.

Arguments for economic growth, additional revenue
Those who have voted for the approval of  license transfers have often cited the need for more economic development and the influx of jobs into the city.

Ellison said he doesn’t ignore the quota limit, but instead believes that the city’s downtown serves much more than the 55,000 residents in the city.

“We have to accept that one of the strengths of Royal Oak is that we are an entertainment district,” he said. “And we have to keep it fresh.”

Ellison said unique development needs to be encouraged so the city’s downtown doesn’t become stale. He said the high cost of in-town licenses — one which most recently sold for $400,000 — makes it cost-prohibitive for most restaurants to open in the city without importing an outside license, which typical run closer to $50,000.

Rasor, who helped approve the transfer for the Emagine Theatre license but voted against the Midtown Parthenon one, said he isn’t against new restaurants and bars moving into town, he just wants to see if there can be revenue to support policing efforts.

“I don’t think more bars are bad or immoral, I just think we need to find a way to properly pay for their enforcement,” he said.

In a move that drew the ire of others on the commission, Rasor had asked the developers of the Midtown Parthenon if they would do anything to voluntarily help defer enforcement costs.

“The financial picture is very grim,” Rasor said after the meeting. “It’s not going to get any better if we don’t find a way to raise revenue.”

He said while legislation at the state level to allow for communities to tax alcohol per drink is sitting in committee, developers could volunteer to pay that sort of thing to the city.

“I don’t want to wait for Lansing,” Rasor said.

Semchena said he didn’t agree with that approach or the per-drink tax proposal.

“You end up creating potential conflicts, like if you need to shut the facility down,” he said. “You would then be cutting off a revenue source.”

You can reach Staff Writer Jeremy Carroll at jcarroll@candgnews.com or at (586) 279-1110.