Hearing Set On Arena Liquor Rules

The people who control the flow of booze in Washington want to know how, when and where Spokane residents want to get their alcohol at the Spokane Arena.

The state Liquor Control Board will be in Spokane on Wednesday to ask residents what kind of changes they’d like to see in the way drinking is regulated in the state’s major sports events centers.

The board is under direction from the Legislature to write new rules for alcohol consumption in stadiums.

Possible changes could include expanding or further limiting the places alcohol is served within sports facilities. Board members also want to hear residents’ views on what type of events should include alcohol sales.

The board wants to know if alcohol-free seating should be required, and whether Spokane residents oppose allowing hard liquor to be served in the stands.

“That question is still an issue,” said David Goyette, director of licensing and regulation for the board.

A request by stadium owners and operators to allow hard liquor in the stands was withdrawn last month after Seattle-area residents and some lawmakers opposed it.

Board members said they won’t completely rule out the possibility until they get a chance to hear from people in Spokane, Tacoma and Yakima, Goyette said.

The public hearing will begin at 2 p.m. Wednesday at the Doubletree Inn, 322 Spokane Falls Court, at the corner of Division and Spokane Falls Boulevard. Hearings in Tacoma are scheduled for later this month and next.

, DataTimes