HomeMy WebLinkAbout12-15-16 Public Comment - E. Gallinger - Bozeman TaproomFrom:Erin Gallinger
To:Agenda; trustees@bsd7.org
Subject:Bozeman Taproom
Date:Thursday, December 15, 2016 11:32:05 PM
Dear Commissioners and Trustees,
I am a partner in the Bozeman Taproom and am writing to voice my support and ask you to approve the request for
the Bozeman Taproom to be allowed to use an All Beverage license. Our business is operating within the law and
has been granted permission to serve alcohol after obtaining all of the necessary approvals from the State of
Montana and City of Bozeman. We are now asking for a modification to serve distilled spirits. We will not be
increasing the amount of alcohol we serve, nor the number/capacity of customers that we’re able to accommodate.
The city is growing and we want to continue to be a community asset like many other establishments in downtown
Bozeman. We serve food during our operating hours and offer local residents and tourists with a full lunch and/or
dinner menu in a family friendly environment. We chose our location due to its location downtown and understand
that our proximity to Hawthorne elementary brings additional responsibility. We feel strongly that we fit within the
fabric of the downtown community. We have been and will continue to be a good neighbor. Contrary to what
others may be suggesting, having an All Beverage license does not pre-determine what type of establishment we
will become.
I recently attended the Bozeman School Board meeting on 12/12 and have read the letter prepared by the School
Board to the City Commission along with another letter that was sent out to all the Hawthorne parents by their
principal. Although I am not surprised by their opposition to our proposed modification, I am extremely
disappointed in the tone and bullying approach that they have chosen to use in their formal communications. For a
governmental entity and/or its agents to speculate that a certain type of behavior will occur at our establishment
without any supporting evidence is irresponsible and has the potential to damage our reputation. To suggest that an
adult who could be responsibly enjoying an alcoholic beverage with their lunch should be shielded from view is
concerning. Stating that they feel it is unsafe for their students to walk by or to be within view of our establishment
seems to be further insinuating that our customers are doing something wrong or illegal. If there is already other
establishments that have All Beverage licenses within proximity to the school and have not had a negative impact to
date than why are we being singled out? If these comments were being made by individual parents or community
members than I could understand that they’re someone’s opinion, but they’re being made as part of an official
position by the School District and communicated to the public to the detriment of our business.
I was walking downtown today to grab lunch and noticed that there was a large group of school aged children
walking together down Main Street. I can only presume that this was a class of students from Hawthorne or one of
the other nearby grade schools on some sort of field trip. It was a great sight to see and made me remember again
why I enjoy our downtown so much where I've worked for the last eight years and have witnessed similar events on
numerous other occasions. Given the recent events though I couldn’t help but begin to wonder why it is OK for
students to walk by all of these other downtown establishments on a routine basis that serve alcohol during the day
but for some reason it is not safe to walk by the Bozeman Taproom? Have similar concerns about safety and
exposure been raised with other downtown establishments in the past? Has it been suggested by the School Board
to have other establishments modify their businesses? If not, than why again are we being treated differently? We
know that we are closer in location to the other establishments, but to infer that our restaurant with an All Beverage
license is somehow more dangerous than all of the others does not seem to add up. Is there a specific reason why
this illicit behavior would be more likely to occur at our establishment and not at others?
Last, I think it should be noted that Hawthorne School also benefits from being located downtown. The current
expansion and facility upgrades under construction at Hawthorne are being paid for with excess property taxes that
are collected from the downtown business district (TIFF). This is a financial benefit that is unique to Hawthorne
and not something available to other schools within the district. The school and downtown have coexisted on a
mutually beneficial basis for decades and I see no reason why this can’t continue. Bozeman is growing, and that
growth has inevitably lead to the expansion of the downtown core to the north and to the south of Main Street,
resulting in increased commercialization of Mendenhall and Babcock. I believe this is good for downtown and for
Hawthorne with increased property values and tax revenue. There will likely be more growing pains in the future
and although we may not all agree with the types of businesses or developments that are being brought forward by
others, it does not give any of us the right to bully or to make false representations of another person’s intent. What
kind of message does that send to our children?
Thank you for your time and consideration.
Erin Gallinger
1108 Alder Creek Dr.
Bozeman, MT 59715