In accordance with a new state law, the Township Council introduced an ordinance permitting the establishment of a minimum bid of $25,000 for smaller hotels looking to obtain liquor licenses.
The ordinance, introduced on October 13, allows the township to require a $25,000 minimum bid, plus $50 per sleeping room, for hotels offering dining services only to their overnight guests. A public hearing will be held on Monday, October 26.
For many years, the state statute allowed hotels and motels with 100 sleeping rooms to be issued a liquor consumption license without regard to population. However, a recent court decision allowed municipalities — instead of just issuing a license — to actually have a bidding process and set a minimum price. Historically, those liquor licenses had been available at very low price — nowhere near the value of these liquor licenses if given to restaurants.
Usually when it comes to consumption licenses issued to restaurants and larger hotels, the municipality puts the license out to bid. The minimum bid for a consumption license in West Windsor for a regular restaurant is usually more than $600,000.
