Minot - Alderman Paul Pitner released a Live video to his Facebook page Friday afternoon addressing recent online discussion over the upcoming public input hearing on the liquor license cap at Monday's City Council Meeting.
Following recent online posts discussing the merit of the committee, Pitner went live to provide background and history on the committee. He described when the committee began, how it has evolved, and where the members have come from, including him reaching out to Kevin Black to join the committee. Every meeting held by the committee was open to the public and also held opportunity for public input.
At the April 21 City Council meeting, Pitner presented the committee’s findings, outlining four options for moving forward. During that meeting, Alderman Blessum emphasized that when the item returns to the agenda, it should be listed as a public discussion item to give Minot residents an opportunity to share their input with the Council.
With the four options presented, Pitner does not intend to bring any of them to a vote on Monday, but wants as much public discussion as possible.
"It would be irresponsible, I believe, for the council to take any action on Monday," Pitner stated. "This is an opportunity for the initial conversation to start. I would like this to take the same formula that the committee did. And by that, I mean, this might take two, three, four meetings. If there is a resolution found or a path forward found for removing the cap, it might take a few different meetings of conversation back and forth and ideas kicked around before that actually is moved forward. So with that being said, I don't think there is a vote."
On the agenda released by the city for Monday, it simply states that Council is to give staff direction as to which option should be researched further.
Pitner also responded to concerns about whether he should have recused himself from the committee due to potential conflicts of interest. He clarified that he owns commercial property in Minot and that his mother owns property in the downtown area.
"My 69 year old mother is not opening a bar and I will fully support a motion to exclude myself of ever owning a liquor license within the city of Minot. We talk about transparency. This process was more transparent than pretty much any process I've been a part of on my time on council, again, I'll reiterate, every meeting there was an invitation sent out to license holders. There was opportunities for public input at every meeting for license holders."
Pitner addressed the hostility seen online, calling it “disheartening” to witness the personal attacks directed at himself and other committee members. He emphasized his commitment to transparency on the issue and welcomed any questions from the public.
Council will meet Monday, May 5th at 5:30PM in council chambers, with a public hearing on this subject that has gained traction over recent weeks.
