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The state alcohol and beverage commission is covering all bases, reviewing files and gathering information, according to new commissioner Clifford Ong.
And that's why Jeff Murray of Stonehenge Golf Club was advised by the state ABC to ask for an enabling ordinance to renew the club's alcohol permit to sell liquor by the drink.
His request was received by the Winona Lake Town Council April 10. The club's permit expires in July.
Murray figured the private club's permit was grandfathered in when the Stonehenge area was annexed by the town five years ago.
"We were assured by the state that this was no issue," Murray said when the annexation issue came up.
In towns with populations under 5,000, an enabling ordinance is required to sell liquor. Neither one-way (beer only) nor two-way (beer and wine) permits require an enabling permit.
Permit issuance is determined by population, Ong said in a recent interview. For every 1,500 people a permit is granted, plus one more permit.
Based on 1990 Census Bureau figures giving Winona Lake's population as 4,053, three types of permits were issued: three two-way permits, one to the Boathouse Restaurant, two are available; three grocery store permits, one to Vintage France, two are available; and three one-way permits, which are all open.
Package liquor stores are allowed only in incorporated towns and no enabling ordinance is required.
"There is a phrase in the code regarding fraternal clubs and renewals," Ong said, "and we are exploring this. It doesn't expressly exempt anyone. I am asking our lawyers if that reference applies to social clubs, too."
Wednesday Ong said he wouldn't have an answer about the club's status until next week.
The reason for the state ABC's caution lies in litigation between a bar owner and the recently incorporated town of Leo-Cedarville, near Fort Wayne.
The tavern, in existence for years, was denied a permit when the town incorporated because the town council refused to generate an enabling ordinance.
A district court is expected to rule on the matter this summer.
"There is no such thing as a grandfathering clause for liquor sales," Ong said, because it is a permitted privilege. "Only zoning laws have grandfathering because it's property, something you hold by right. The ABC license is a permit, done on an annual basis."
When the town of Leo-Cedarville refused to pass an enabling ordinance and the Attorney General's office agreed with the town, it essentially put the bar out of business.
A hearing is set for May 11 in the District Court of Appeals.
If the judges find there is no grandfathering of an alcoholic beverage permit, the town will have to pass an enabling ordinance or the bar owner will have to seek another remedy.
If they rule it is grandfathered, business may continue as usual.
And so, while a ruling is being determined, Ong is being cautious. A former prosecuting attorney, he has held the ABC commissioner's position for a year.
"Nobody tells us about annexation," Ong said. "I understand we brought it up (passage of an enabling ordinance to sell liquor) with the town two years ago and waited for them to do it."
The state office has had its share of the troubles with a former chairman leaving and an indictment against the former superintendent.
"We're going through all permit files now. We're looking at quotas and all permits that are or are not active, and the context in which they were approved," Ong said.
"Just because we haven't acted on it (the Stonehenge permit) in five years doesn't mean it shouldn't be reviewed," he said. "We would let them have an extension until the Court of Appeals decision comes down."
Or the code book is interpreted in the club's favor.
