A local business owner has requested that "bar" operations, places with a class one liquor license, be allowed to sell pre-made mixed drinks off-sale.
Matt Bonzer, owner of Bonzer’s Sandwich Pub in downtown Grand Forks said his business, while open for takeout food, won’t survive, unless the liquor law is changed.
“Our bread is buttered by on-sale alcohol sales, not food sales,” wrote Bonzer in Wednesday's continuing Business Listening Session. Participants in the video meetings are required to submit questions in writing. “Some of us have menus, others do not, but regardless, being able to stay open for carry-out and off-sale simply isn't a viable business plan.”
Previously, Mayor Mike Brown issued an executive order on March 25 allowing residents to order beer and wine with their takeout meals. Bonzer noted that it should not be a big change to make the allowances for class one operations, and the change could keep his business going.
“I wouldn't be raising the issue if I didn't know that it could save our business right now, wrote Bonzer. “Our phone has been ringing off the hook for pre-made Long Island iced teas."
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Bonzer made his remarks at a Business Listening Session held on Wednesday April 1, via videoconferencing. The meetings are for local businesses and nonprofits to express concerns to local government and economic development officials.
The listening session also covered topics of employment, yielding some good news. Employers who have had to lay off employees due to the coronavirus pandemic will have access to federal funds to hire those employees back, if they make use of the Paycheck Protection Program.
The program, referred to as PPP, is part of the massive economic stimulus program called the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act, signed into law by President Donald Trump last week. The PPP is a loan program administered by the U.S. Small Business Administration designed to help most businesses with less than 500 employees continue to pay their workers.
The loans can be for up to $10 million and need to be applied for through an SBA-approved local lender. The loans are not only limited to payroll costs, such as salaries and health insurance, but can be used for other business-related expenses, such as mortgage and company debt. The portion of the loan used to cover payroll ma be eligible for forgiveness.
This, according to Courtnee Jensen at the North Dakota Department of Commerce, has caused some confusion among employers.
“These are loans; they are not grants. I know I've heard over and over again, people say that these are grants. They are a traditional loan," said Jensen, adding that forgiveness may be possible provided the employer keeps their employees working through what she called the “critical period of time,” in this case, June 30.
Dustin Hillebrand, workforce center manager for Job Service North Dakota, participated in the session to help clarify uncertainties about unemployment insurance. Under the CARES Act, self-employed people will be able to apply for the benefit, he said.
Hillebrand also noted that people on unemployment insurance would be able to receive an extra $600 per week due to the stimulus program. People needing to apply for unemployment insurance should do it in the state in which they work.
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Hillebrand asked the more than 100 participants at the session for their patience as he said his office is handling a heavy number of new claims. As of March 16, Hillebrand said there were 24,667 claims.
“Just to compare that, in the whole year of 2019, we had 25,000, so we are busy,” Hillebrand said.
