New Bill Would Allow MN Cities To Establish A Social District

ST. PAUL (WJON News) -- A bill before the Minnesota legislature could make it possible for people to carry their adult beverages with them from business to business. The Social Districts Bill (SF1182) provides a standard operating time and for local ordinances to establish parameters for what a social district would look like.

Photo by BENCE BOROS on Unsplash

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Businesses could opt in or out of the area and Visit Greater St. Cloud's Executive Director Rachel Thompson says having a social district would be a big boost for downtown St. Cloud:

"That would be huge for downtown St. Cloud. We're really excited about the vibrancy and that type of lively entertainment with being able to responsibly bring and carry beverages outside of those businesses."

She says a social district would be a benefit for downtown events and normal day-to-day business:

"Just that ability to bring your wine into shopping stores if they'll allow for it or if you think about the ease of event planning for those businesses and those entities that want to put on a festival in downtown that they can have that larger beer garden without perhaps more of those hoops that typically you have to go through to get a beer garden set up and all those things."

PHOTO courtesy of Helena Lopes on Unsplash

Downtown St. Cloud, photo by WJON.com's Jim Maurice

Thompson says there is still a lot of work to be done to get the bill passed but hopes to see movement this session and something approved this year. The bill has been introduced to the Senate and will be included in the omnibus liquor bill.

It is still waiting for some additional language to be worked on before being introduced to the House. St. Cloud Senator Aric Putnam is the chief author of the bill.

Downtown St. Cloud, photo by WJON.com's Alex Svejkovsky

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