Alcohol sales will be allowed in some Kenmore parks following a vote by the City Council to begin issuing event permits.
At a Feb. 22 meeting the Council voted six-to-one to pass an ordinance to begin issuing alcohol permits for approved events in larger city parks, such as Rhododendron and Squire’s Landing.
In addition to a city permit, applicants must also acquire state Liquor and Cannabis Control Board permits.
Kenmore mayor David Baker supported the ordinance.
“The hoops they have to jump through are pretty daunting,” he said. “They just can’t bring it in.”
Before the change in ordinance, consuming alcohol in a city park could result in misdemeanor charges, punishable by three months in jail and up to a $500 fine.
In a letter to the city, Kenmore Police Chief Cliff Sether and Jennifer Gordon with the city’s public works department expressed their concerns, focusing on the muddling of enforcement options and worries about harm to children in the parks.
“The (former) ordinance establishes a ‘Bright line’ rule then dealing with alcohol in our parks and has been an outstanding tool for our police to use in keeping our parks safe for our children,” the letter states.
The letter also expressed worries that catching intoxicated park patrons would become more difficult, as people could arrive at the event intoxicated and roam freely, including near children’s play areas.
Kenmore Deputy Mayor Allan VanNess voted against the ordinance, citing the concerns expressed in Sether’s letter.
“I essentially respect the opinion of our chief of police who didn’t want it to go through,” VanNess said.
He said he also felt like there should be some sort of resistance to the measure, even with a sole symbolic vote against it.
“I think its remote that we’ll have a problem, but I felt a measure of caution, it shouldn’t be a unanimous vote,” he said.
The new ordinance also allows permanent businesses to sell alcohol in public parks too. VanNess gave the example of a coffee shop which could go in at the conceived ‘town green’ in downtown Kenmore, which could potentially serve coffee by day, and some alcohol by night.
But he said there would be no pubs or similar establishments setting up.
“The city would have ultimate control over who went in, and who they leased the space to, and who could get permits,” he said.
Smaller parks would not be allowed to have alcohol served at them, including Lynnwood and Log Boom parks.
