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Read comments (3)At the last meeting, Dennis Wilson appeared representing manager Scott Green, and questioned the board's reasoning in their original decision to decline the application.
According to the ordinance used to issue pool table licenses, the board has the right to determine the "moral fitness" of the applicant. What makes the issue so touchy is that there is no definition of what constitutes moral fitness.
Alderman Rick Hux, after posing many questions in regards to legality, pointed out that the board didn't appear to have an option but to approve the ordinance.
"I think we're definitely going to have to look at how we can fix this ordinance, but from what I can see we have no choice but to approve this," Hux said.
Alderman Tim Aslin also spoke up questioning the constitutionality of the presumably very old ordinance.
"I originally supported the denial of the pool table license based on the recommendation of the Police Department and they, of course, based their analysis upon our existing city ordinance," Aslin said. "The questions regarding the denial by Mr. Green's attorney resulted in several of the aldermen re-examining the current city ordinance. I found it to be out-of-date and too general to withstand a court challenge. Therefore, I felt voting for approval of the application to be the only reasonable option at this time."
With a liquor license, a felony or drug related offense is enough to keep the license issued, the pool table license has no such concrete standard.
That could change one of two ways in the future.
One option would be to amend the ordinance to where the pool tables licenses are held to the same standard as the liquor licenses which creates a few problems.
As Alderman Hux pointed out, there is a big difference between a pool table in a drinking establishment and a skating rink.
The other question raised had to do with once you regulate pool table what about games like darts and shuffle board that are also popular in bars?
The second option is to make pool table licensing a routine duty that does not need aldermanic approval and use the liquor license process to weed out those who have been problems.
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This is just a pool table, correct. Every body has thier very own little hobbies that they enjoy by thier self or with others.I happen to enjoy going to SONNT"S to gather with my friends and put my quarters on the pool table and enjoy alittle competion on the table. I for one usaully am the one rackings most of the time,meaning I loose often, but does it really matter if your having fun and with your friends? true I could be out doing other things,but if I enjoy playing pool and I am not hurting anyone else ,then i look at it this way,I"m gettting my exercise moving around the table making my balls. Do you know that playing pool uses alot of your mental reflectes trying to figure out just what english you need to use to actually make your own ball? So here"s a big CHEER to SONNY"S for just giving us plain folk somewhere to go have alittle fun and drink a beer at the end of a long workday and enjoy the little things in life. YES IT IS JUST A POOLTABLE!
It's a freaking POOL TABLE you morons!!! Are you serious?!? A POOL TABLE?!? I would hope the city has more important issues. Would I have to have the city's approval to put a pool table in my basement? How about a Playstation 2?
Whewwwwwww! Glad to know this has been resolved. I have been worried sick about weather people in Sonny's get to play pool.