In his 14 years as Naperville's mayor and liquor commissioner, George Pradel has never revoked a local bar or restaurant's liquor license.
Which begs the questions: is that because city officials and police tend to go easy on nightclub and restaurant owners because of the copious tax revenue their businesses generate? Or is it because the downtown nightlife district -- despite its rowdy reputation in some quarters -- is comparatively trouble-free?
Articles from the Naperville Sun library and anecdotal evidence suggest that out of the thousands of people visiting the downtown area on a typical Friday or Saturday, 1 percent or fewer are arrested for assault, battery, property damage or other crimes related to alcohol consumption there.
Still, the city's 32 liquor-licensed establishments and their employees can be held legally liable for indulging their patrons by "over-serving" them and, in some instances, conjuring their darker sides.
"We're constantly telling them we don't want them to over-serve," Pradel said of local tavern and restaurant operators. "Our police check all the time to see that people aren't being over-served. The owners could be in deep trouble" for that if, for example, a patron should become involved in a drunken-driving crash, he said.
"I think our city is very fortunate that we have such responsible owners of the bars and restaurants that serve liquor," Pradel said. "I know it's hard times, but we really put the clamp on people, and if they're over-serving, we're going to be taking them to court."
What do you think? Do you think Naperville bartenders to a good job at monitoring patrons' alcohol intake? Do you think that downtown Naperville's nightlife promotes fun, safe socializing - or is it becoming an area that draws more debauchery out of people than other areas?
And furthermore - do you think bartenders should be held liable if a patron drinks too much - or should that be something that simply falls under the category of "personal responsibility?"
Voice your thoughts - they might be published in The Sun this week!
Recently in Economy Category
A recent survey shows that 54 percent of Americans plan to use their tax refund to pay off bills, up from 35 percent last year. Only 5 percent planned to go on a shopping spree.
Many people have traditionally treated their tax refund as free money to do something fun with, but this year it seems that has changed. With the lousy economy and people worried about losing their jobs, everyone wants to get themselves in better financial shape to weather the storm.
How about you? If you are getting a refund, are you being sensible with it or are you treating yourself?
Some business owners are saying downtown is becoming "the high-rent district," while some landlords are saying it depends who your landlord is and how long you've been a tenant. But all agree having a set business plan and knowing what you're getting yourself into is the key to successfully launching a small business downtown.
The Downtown Naperville Alliance says plenty of the stores downtown aren't corporate owned, but others aren't so sure new mom-and-pop shops can make it.
Let's be realistic, Naperville is an expensive place to live, shop and dine, so any small business trying to make a go of it here should have a well-though-out plan and enough cash to last until customers are established. Visitors come from miles around to puruse the merchandise and eat the fine food.
That said, What do you think of the mix of stores downtown? Have you had a bad or good experience renting space there? Any particular niche missing?
Congress lived up to its 18 percent approval rating Monday when the House failed to pass the $700 billion financial rescue package, or bailout. The stock market responded in kind, dropping some 770 points in the biggest one-day point fall in history.
Naperville's local representative, Judy Biggert, voted against the bailout. Do you agree with her vote? Do you agree that the U.S. government should rescue the financial sector, and the alternative could be worse? Hmmmm....higher taxes, or another Great Depression...which do you prefer?
There is so much to the mess, and no easy way out of it. Are you concerned about your personal savings -- your 401(k), pensions or other retirement investments? What about the value of your home? How much equity is in your home? Have you borrowed on the equity in your home? Did you think home values would always increase? Do you now owe more than your home is worth?
In what ways is the financial crisis affecting you?
Naperville is grappling with a $5.1 million budget shortfall this year, thanks to less-than-expected revenues from sales and real estate transfer taxes. The city has adopted a hiring freeze, will not replace 21 vehicles in the current budget and will look at other steps to close this year's budget gap.
Next year, unless something is done, the deficit will be in the $10 million to $11 million range, city Finance Director Doug Kreiger told the City Council Tuesday. Moves under consideration include eliminating positions, reductions in overtime spending, wage freezes and other steps dealing with reducing personnel costs.
This is just the beginning of the budget process, a time when the City Council ought to be most receptive to hearing what constituents think ought to be done to balance the budget. This forum is your opportunity to share ideas and debate issues. So pretend you're talking to the mayor and city council, and say what you'd like to see done to get Naperville back in the black.
The Naperville Sun has received several complaints about Nicor Gas bills. It's summer but readers' bills don't reflect that -- usually bills come every two months in the warm months. The Citizens Utility Board also has received complaints -- almost 500 about their bills. The consumer watchdog group says some customers are being billed inaccuratly because Nicor is not reading meters every two months as required by law. When meters are estimated instead of read, customers can end up paying less than what they're consuming, a CUB official says. Problems come when the meters are read after months of being estimated. Cub says when the meter is finally read, customers get hit with extermely high bills because of the accumulation, and because Nicor charges all upaid bills at the last month's rate. Nicor attributes the higher than usual customer complaints to billing changes. The company is offering some relief. Through Sept. 19, certain customers will be eligible to pay half their balance and pay the rest in installments over nine months.
Tell us your stories about high energy costs and what you plan to do to deal with them as cooler weather heads our way. With natural gas prices hitting $1.45 per therm in July, what will that mean for you?
Naperville businessman Jim Bergeron says "a perfect storm" led to the closing of downtown restaurant Tessa's. After 14 months, it closed its doors Sunday. Bergeron says the statewide smoking ban, home foreclosures, bad weather this winter and even the war are factors in the decision. Several other area restaurants have closed too, including the downtown restaurant Masala Yangu in June, and Petey Z's in Oswego, which had moved from near the downtown train station less than a year ago. National chains are struggling, too. Just Tuesday, the Bennigan's in Bolingbrook and Woodridge closed.
But Paul Junkroski, chairman of the Downtown Naperville Alliance, says Naperville restaurants are "weathering" the downturn in the economy. And from the crowds on Friday and Saturday nights and the traffic on Washington Street, he seems to be right.
What were your best experiences at Tessa's? Tell us about your favorite foods, wine or other reasons to dine there.
A four-day work week sounds pretty tempting. The Will County auditor's office is trying it. Auditor Steve Weber says, "We talked about this program thoroughly as a staff, and at this point, we plan to continue indefinitely." The office has been testing out 10-hour shifts, four days a week with workers taking either Friday or Monday off. This makes sure someone is available during normal business hours. Weber said he's received national attention for trying the program out, and DuPage County has at least asked about it. Jeff Webb, chief technology officer for the Seattle-based Institute for Corporate Productivity, said studies of gas savings have confirmed that consumption would be lessened and that four-day work weeks can be effective, "depending on the nature of the job." What do you think?
Would you like working only four 10-hour days versus five eight-hour days? What obstacles in your job do you see to this working out? How would it affect your life - good and bad?
Sunday's Sun features a story about a couple of Naperville-area Realtors who bought one of those conversion kits that make a diesel engine run on vegetable oil. At $4 a gallon for gas and even more for diesel, they figure the $1,000 kit will pay for itself in a matter of months.
What are you doing to save money on gas? Driving less? Looking to trade in that SUV for a compact? Rethinking that summer drive to the Grand Canyon? How are you coping with the high gas prices? And how do you pay for gas--cash or credit?
Naperville Mayor A. George Pradel and others addressed the Naperville Area Homeowners Confederation Saturday about encouraging residents to visit local attractions instead of heading out of town, what with today's gas prices.
You can read the story here in The Sun:
http://www.suburbanchicagonews.com/napervillesun/news/1018997,6_1_NA23_NAHC_S1.article
With festivals, concerts and destinations like Centennial Beach, the DuPage Children's Museum and Naper Settlement, there is a lot to do in town. What's your favorite summertime event/activity/destination in Naperville?
