RAILYARD ALCOHOL ORDINANCE

Issue: A proposed ordinance would allow alcohol other than beer and wine at events hosted at Railyard properties such as SITE Santa Fe, El Museo Cultural and the Farmer’s Market Pavilion. The proposal describes the current language prohibiting the sale and consumption of alcohol other than beer and wine at these locations as “an inadvertent mistake.”

Discussion: Councilor Mike Harris invoked last week’s 90-minute debate at the City Council meeting over whether to grant the arts collective Meow Wolf a full liquor license. The council, with Councilor Signe Lindell against and Councilor Ron Trujillo absent in protest, voted to postpone the Meow Wolf transfer and raised questions about the need and propriety and whether Meow Wolf,

which currently serves beer and wine, ought to consider a different sort of license. Councilor Renee Villarreal said the city’s ordinance regarding alcohol in the Railyard was “way more onerous than we ever thought” with respect to events that might rent space. Councilor Carmichael Dominguez said one difference between the proposed Railyard shift and the Meow Wolf request was that the Railyard buildings were on city land. But Harris suggested the Railyard proposal “kind of diminishes” some of the arguments councilors had made regarding the Meow Wolf license.

What’s next: Approved unanimously. Scheduled for City Council on Nov. 8, when the Meow Wolf proposal will be heard again as well. “I imagine we’re gonna have some good conversations when we get to council,” Dominguez

said.