The council decision means Alibi at Froggy Bottoms Owner Lisa Monet Zarza will not be able to legally serve alcohol at her establishment.
Councilors Suzie Nakasian and George Zuccolotto and Mayor Rhonda Pownell voted to grant Zarza a license until an administrative law judge decides whether a five-year liquor license revocation she faces at her Alibi location in Lakeville will stand.
The decision came after Northfield Police Chief Mark Elliott recommended not renewing the Northfield license based in part on Zarzaâs refusal to comply with a statewide mandated closure of in-person dining and alcohol last winter at her Lakeville establishment during a statewide outbreak of COVID-19 cases.
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Last week, Alibi Drinkery in Lakeville became the epicenter for the debate over how far Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz has gone in banning indoor dining and gathering at bars and restaurants in an effort to slow the spread of COVID-19.
Local elected officials, however, are speaking out against the decision by owner Lisa Monet Zarza, who also owns Alibi at Froggy Bottomâs in Northfield.
The Lakeville bar opened at 11 a.m. Dec. 16 in defiance of the executive order ban on selling alcohol for in-person consumption, which was extended into January by the governor later in the day. That announcement was carried on Alibiâs television sets, as people crammed into the bar to eat, drink and be merry.
With license suspension pending, Lakeville bar opens for second day running
Alibi Drinkery has courted controversy with its decision to flout COVID-19 orders.
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The Lakeville bar that sparked controversy when it opened Wednesday in violation of Minnesota s COVID-19 orders is opening for a second consecutive day. OPEN TODAY. COME IN FOR FOOD AND DRINKS! the bar wrote on its Facebook page Thursday morning.
It comes after the Minnesota Department of Public Safety served it with notice that its liquor license will be suspended for 60 days for its blatant violation of Gov. Tim Walz s Executive Order 20-99 shutting down dine-in service until Dec. 18 – which will now be extended to Jan. 11.