Council repeals new liquor servers’ ID law

Officials expect a streamlined version of the ordinance to be introduced at Borough Council’s June 26 meeting.

By: Audrey Levine
   Borough Council on Monday repealed a recently approved ordinance requiring anyone serving alcoholic beverages to wear photo identification.
   The concerns of the business owners convinced the borough to take a look at the ordinance and draft another version, according to Mayor Angelo Corradino.
   He said he worked with a committee that included several business owners and the Manville police chief to discuss the best course of action for the ordinance.
   "There were some valid concerns, which is why we are revising it," he said.
   The original ordinance, approved May 29, required any person who serves alcoholic beverages, provides security at any bar or restaurant, supervises employees who serve the drinks or owns at least a 10 percent interest in a liquor license to wear a photo identification issued by the Division of Alcoholic Beverage Control.
   To obtain an ID, workers would be required to fill out an application with the Police Department that included a criminal history check, a history of borough ordinance violations and fingerprints.
   The entire process would cost $50.
   Many owners of Manville bars and restaurants turned out for Monday’s meeting wanting to express their concerns over the ordinance, but said they were relieved when it was repealed.
   "I was very happy that it was repealed," said Dave Kiernan, owner of Uncle Davey’s Tavern on North Main Street, in a later interview. "I thought the language of it assumed that you were guilty of something. The fact that they repealed the whole thing says something."
   Cassandra Russell, owner of the Northside Lounge on Brooks Boulevard, expressed a similar opinion about the repeal of the ordinance.
   "It shows that when people get together, they can show the town that they mean business," she said. "I don’t understand why a driver’s license isn’t enough identification. I don’t feel the ordinance is warranted."
   Mayor Corradino said they are looking into several changes for the ordinance, which will be reintroduced at the June 26 Borough Council meeting. He said that, although they still want all employees to obtain a photo ID, the borough is looking into creating a system that divides the workers into two tiers.
   The first tier would include bartenders and security personnel, who would still be required to get a background check and be fingerprinted, the mayor said. The second tier, which would include waiters, waitresses and busboys, would only have to fill out an application for the ID, but would not be subjected to background checks, thus reducing the price for them.
   "Originally, the applications were too expensive and it was tough to monitor because there is heavy turnover," Mayor Corradino said. "Everyone felt it was detrimental to the businesses."
   Mr. Kiernan said he believes it would be beneficial to simply allow bar owners to take pictures of, and gather information about, their own employees, which they can then provide to police officers or other officials. He said he already has a mandatory list visible in his business that shows pertinent information about his employees.
   "I would be more than happy to take pictures of them that we can keep on file for officials," he said. "What they are asking for is a lot of information for not doing something wrong."
   Overall, Mayor Corradino said, the borough is now trying to figure out a better way to monitor the workers.
   "We want to make modifications to better monitor them, but make it cheaper for the owners," he said.