Your Creative Solutions to the Beer at TCF Snafu

[Tater]

Here's a post for all creative G'holers who want to see this alcohol sales at TCF Bank Stadium issue taken care of in a thoughful way. As a University alumnus, I'm constantly disappointed by the University's lack of creativity in dealing with controversy. Most recently, the U decided to kill the marching band's march down University and into the stadium, a tradition that had been a fan favorite at old Memorial that I remember loving as a 4 year old. In that case, Washington avenue is going to be closed down for light rail construction (even though that doesn't actually start this season) and the U decided it would cause too many traffic problems to shut down a three block stretch of University for 15 minutes an hour or more before game time to allow the band to march (even though multiple busy streets were shut down for a short period of time to let the band march to the metrodome). Without any brainstorming or creative solutions, the U killed this great tradition.

Back to the point of the post, if you have any creative ideas to solve the TCF bank beer sales issue, please post them here.

 

[Tater]

Here's my solution (previously posted on thedailygopher.com):

The new liquor law provides:

No alcoholic beverage may be sold or served at TCF Bank Stadium unless the Board of Regents holds an on-sale intoxicating liquor license for the stadium as provided in paragraph (a), clause (3).

Paragraph (a), clause (3) provides:

(a) Notwithstanding any other law, local ordinance, or charter provision, the commissioner may issue on-sale intoxicating liquor licenses: … (3) to the Board of Regents of the University of Minnesota for events at Northrop Auditorium, the intercollegiate football stadium, or at no more than seven other locations within the boundaries of the University of Minnesota, provided that the Board of Regents has approved an application for a license for the specified location provided that a license for an arena or stadium location is void unless it requires the sale or service of intoxicating liquor throughout the arena or stadium if intoxicating liquor is sold or served anywhere in the arena or stadium…

Here’s the solution: Allow alcohol throughout the stadium. Any fan seated in the common sections who wants a drink must enter through a certain gate (or two). At this gate, ticket takers or some other employee will check IDs and put one or two wrist bands on any individual who wants to buy a drink. Then, if any fan seated in the common section wants a drink, s/he has to show his/her ID at the concession stand, pay for the drink, and have one of his/her wrist bands cut off and taken by the concessionnaire. When s/he has no more wrist bands, no more drinks are allowed to be sold.

This idea allows the U to make a significant amount of money, allows everyone to drink, and limits drinking to one or two (or maybe even three) drinks per individual.

Its amazing that an institution that is supposed to be full of creative thinkers can’t come up with a creative solution to this mess. I don’t pretend that this is a perfect solution, but it is a relatively simple solution that covers, in part, everyone’s concerns.

 

[Tater]

When thinking of creative solutions, here are the main issues that both sides have:

Pro Liquor:
- Makes the U tons of $$$;
- Those over 21 are legally allowed to drink and should be able to do so;
- Everyone drank before at the Dome without (significant) problems;
- We shouldn't have a two class fanbase (the have and have nots argument);
- People are going to drink anyway.

Con Liquor:
- Other stadiums in the B10 and elsewhere typically do not allow alcohol sales;
- It increases police costs/security costs to deal with thousands of drinkers;
- Binge drinking is a problem that the U is trying to deal with;
- Underage students might get a hold of drinks (to this I say: no doy);
- There have been drinking problems in the past at games (see, e.g., Iowegian bathroom porn incident).

Feel free to add some other points, pro and con, to this list. The point is to address as many concerns (fully understanding that it is impossible to deal with every concern completely) in your proposed solution.

 

[FreakyDeke]

Simple

Beer sold on the concourse is $100 a pint. It's available, but up to you to decide if you want to cough it up.

 

[ulfr]

I think a beer garden would be a solution. It centralizes drinking, providing a controlled environment. Drinking in the Club Room could resume as a VIP-type bar and a general access beer garden, and disallow it in general seating areas. This allows reduced security considerations, and disallows the ability to bring alcohol to underaged fans in the stands, which was the modus operandi of many a student section under aged drinker in the Dome (myself included). Untill expansion there appears to be room at the top of the stadium and it would have one hell of a view. I think most people would prefer to watch the game, but I think it would be hard for the state legislation to question the University's preference that consumption of alcohol remain in a safely contained and controllable environment.

To support this I would turn the states own regulations and harassment of liquor purveyors and actually take a stand in the media. The U went all too quietly into the night on this issue. Ask the legislature some tougher questions. If the Xcel can be successfully sued under state statue in a multimillion dollar suit for not sending beer guys down rows to check on the condition of those being served, how is it fair of the university to try to avoid the very situation? Several down-town venues have been shut-down for not being more controlling of who gets in and ultimately consumes alcohol, yet the U is socially obliged to let every last adult get hammered? Dress codes are legally acceptable means to control a bar, yet counting alcohol as premium service is out of line? There is strong expectiations of the state that drinking be controlled, yet when the U balks at becoming another drunken NFL stadium, and taking on all the risk that comes with that, it is okay to throw out 30 years of the State progressively forcing all responsiblity of liquor consumption on the people serving the alcohol? All the public hand wringing by the politicians of this state for years over under aged consumption, but now this? There is definitely some easy public arguments that could have been made by the U but they just sat an took it in the media for two months and rode their little boat onto the rocks.

Provide an alternative solution and go out and make some noise. An annual couple of million of dollars may be at stake all because the legislation is full of suddenly egalitarian politicians? This isn't equal access to healthcare or education or something else that might actually improve this state, its just malt and hops. Make sure every kid can go to a doctor before you worry about every lush getting a drink at a ball game or taking more money out of university coffers.

 

[GopherLady]

You asked for creative ideas...

All of these ideas are under $15...so they'd pay for themselves if they just replaced 3 beers at the stadium:

 

[Tater]

I think a beer garden would be a solution.

This is a pretty solid solution. Great idea. They could even set it up in the open part of the U (below the big jumbotron).

 

[Ski U Mah Gopher]

All of these ideas are under $15...so they'd pay for themselves if they just replaced 3 beers at the stadium:

I don't think the flip-flops will work well in November

 

[DLguy]

At the Ralph up in Grand Forks they sell booze but it is not allowed in the Student Section. You have to have a wristband to buy booze. So any underage student would have to drink in the concourse where cops and security are walking around and would be able to easily catch them. Works great up there, why not do that?

 

[GoAUpher]

At the Ralph up in Grand Forks they sell booze but it is not allowed in the Student Section. You have to have a wristband to buy booze. So any underage student would have to drink in the concourse where cops and security are walking around and would be able to easily catch them. Works great up there, why not do that?

Interesting idea. I'd think the arguments against it would focus on lots of drunk students filling the concourse, etc.

 

[grunkiejr]

I like the $100/beer idea. They could make it so that only one concession stand--on the opposite side of the stadium from the student section--sells beer (technically open to all fans) for $100 a beer. At least that way you only need to waste 1 keg of beer instead of having every concession stand tap a keg that won't be used.

 

[GoAUpher]

I like the $100/beer idea. They could make it so that only one concession stand--on the opposite side of the stadium from the student section--sells beer (technically open to all fans) for $100 a beer. At least that way you only need to waste 1 keg of beer instead of having every concession stand tap a keg that won't be used.

I think this idea is terrible politics/optics. It would legitimize the elitist/unfair arguments. I can hear it now..."The U allows elitist snobs to buy beer for $6.50 while the average Joe must shell out $100!"

 

[grunkiejr]

I think this idea is terrible politics/optics. It would legitimize the elitist/unfair arguments. I can hear it now..."The U allows elitist snobs to buy beer for $6.50 while the average Joe must shell out $100!"

If you do the math the price is probably comparable. Some of those club seats are $1200. If both consumers buy 1 beer per game the average Joe is still spending less money.

I am having fun with it. I just don't like what the legislature did so I would personally enjoy seeing the U find a way around the law. I didn't read the details closely but I don't recall any stipulation about the price being the same in each section of the stadium.

 

[GoAUpher]

If you do the math the price is probably comparable. Some of those club seats are $1200. If both consumers buy 1 beer per game the average Joe is still spending less money.

I am having fun with it. I just don't like what the legislature did so I would personally enjoy seeing the U find a way around the law. I didn't read the details closely but I don't recall any stipulation about the price being the same in each section of the stadium.

I'd love to have them find away around it too, but not one that legitimizes the idiotic arguments used to defend this legislation.

At this point I'm pretty sure this will end 1 of 3 ways...1) In court. 2) The U keeps everything dry. 3) The U spends the next year lobbying and changes get made to the law that allow a dry general seating area with a wet premium seating area.

I don't see the U enacting a workaround that makes booze ok in general seating (or just outright selling beer) unless the athletic budget gets completely out of whack (read: must cut sports) or they are on the verge of losing a ton of suite holders.

 

[WinLoseOrTy]

Beer sold on the concourse is $100 a pint. It's available, but up to you to decide if you want to cough it up.

Pure genius!!!

 

[StPaulHawkeye]

Why not make TCF like Midway Stadium for the St Paul Saints where you can come and go as many times as you please? Keep a cooler at your tailgate lot or run over to a local establishment at the half for your fix. Two beers, a couple of smokes, head back in for the 2nd half kickoff.
Creative solution - not really, it's currently being done. But what did you expect from a Hawkeye fan?

 

[casual observer]

Club Seats start @ $1800... They are not even the best seats in the house. The U better start their checkbooks up. REFUNDS.

 

[hyaluronic]

If anyone should be refunding suite money, it is the state government. I do not know if there is any legal basis for it, but they are the ones who reneged on the agreement which substantially altered the value of suites. Or the state could pay the U $2MM/yr fin damages.

 

[drunkenMNgopher]

If there is no alcohol in the bank, there will be no sex in the bathrooms.

 

[GopherRock]

If there is no alcohol in the bank, there will be no sex in the bathrooms.

There's no alcohol in Camp Randall either, but that didn't slow these two down...

 

[USTGopher]

My personal preference would be a beer garden with one caveat. I don't think that the beer garden should have a view of the field. If it was located in the open end with a decent view you would have people buying the cheapest seats possible and then spending the entire time in the beer garden drinking and watching the game with what probably would be a better view. Not sure where a good location would be. One possibility would be to have one gate that opens up to a gated garden.

 

[forestlaker]

Spend a week at Hazelden that might help.

 

[go4rube]

Go big or go home

http://www.thebeerbelly.com/

 

[ulfr]

My personal preference would be a beer garden with one caveat. I don't think that the beer garden should have a view of the field. If it was located in the open end with a decent view you would have people buying the cheapest seats possible and then spending the entire time in the beer garden drinking and watching the game with what probably would be a better view. Not sure where a good location would be. One possibility would be to have one gate that opens up to a gated garden.

As the bill was gaining traction in the legislature my initial reaction was to put a bar with five bar stools that face a wall or even better at the top of the stadium facing only the tumble down silos yet where there is room to let the line get nice and long along the top of the stadium. 'Get there when the gates open if you want a chance of getting a beer before your buzz dies you lush', as a big f' you to the faux egalitarians that have all sprung up amongst the the law makers of this state. But then again I am a vindicative bastard.

In the end, and in all honesty, containment in a small beer garden is a responsible option that the state would be hard pressed to counter without stepping on their own barbed tails with their cloven feet.

 

[howeda7]

As the bill was gaining traction in the legislature my initial reaction was to put a bar with five bar stools that face a wall or even better at the top of the stadium facing only the tumble down silos yet where there is room to let the line get nice and long along the top of the stadium. 'Get there when the gates open if you want a chance of getting a beer before your buzz dies you lush', as a big f' you to the faux egalitarians that have all sprung up amongst the the law makers of this state. But then again I am a vindicative bastard.

In the end, and in all honesty, containment in a small beer garden is a responsible option that the state would be hard pressed to counter without stepping on their own barbed tails with their cloven feet.

I like your idea. Empty out a janitor's closet-size room. Stick a keg in there with an employee and two stools. Let 2 at at time in, you can only buy one beer at at time, and you must drink it there. You have 10 minutes, from time of purchase. Also, in order to purchase you must show two forms of ID and a copy of your credit report. I'm sure it will be very popular and satisfy this wonderful law nicely.

 

[69Gophers]

Gate off the concourse to contain the student section and allow alchohol in the remainder of the stadium. Students now have no access. For a University so concerned with the availability of alchohol why in the world are they even allowing it in thier parking lots. What difference does it make what side of the gate your drinking on? Other than a $1000 dollar donation or so they don't even make any money off the booze in the lots. What in the world does Robert B. think they will be doing out there at the crack of dawn on game days? And yes there will be students out there. At least when sold inside they can control the distribution. I fail to see the difference in what side of the gate your drinking on, it's all stadium and university property.

 

[ulfr]

Gate off the concourse to contain the student section and allow alchohol in the remainder of the stadium. Students now have no access. For a University so concerned with the availability of alchohol why in the world are they even allowing it in thier parking lots. What difference does it make what side of the gate your drinking on? Other than a $1000 dollar donation or so they don't even make any money off the booze in the lots. What in the world does Robert B. think they will be doing out there at the crack of dawn on game days? And yes there will be students out there. At least when sold inside they can control the distribution. I fail to see the difference in what side of the gate your drinking on, it's all stadium and university property.

Allowing drinking in the stands is not controlling distribution. Several massive law suits decisions have been handed down in this state regarding venues that have over-served people in stands or general seating areas, especially the outrageous case that found the Xcel center liable for not checking a man's condition when they handed beer down the aisle and he later drove drunk and died. All these suits have found the venue culpable for serving in the stands.

Only allowing alcohol in the DQ Club is controlling the distribution, which is not at all what this is all about. This was a quick way for people in Saint Paul to look like they care about the everyman vs the high and mighty academia whilst whittling away our children's future by slashing education funding or failing to find a way to allow all kids access to medicine.

If they want to go forward a modest and controlled beer garden is the answer. Or go after the legislation for their bull shit.