This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2012, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Helper Mayor Dean Armstrong made a presentation to the Utah Liquor Control Commission on Tuesday for approval of a type-3 liquor package agency to replace the one that closed a few months ago on Main Street.
A type-3 agency is a standalone store that primarily sells alcoholic beverages, which differs from a type-2 agency housed inside a retail establishment where most products are non-alcoholic.
When commissioners asked Armstrong why not have a type-2 agency in town, he insisted a stand-alone on Main Street would be a better option to replace the store now shuttered because its owner retired.
The type 3 that Armstrong wants will cost the Department of Alcohol Beverage Control about $4,000 a month, while the type 2 would cost $1,000 a month.
But Armstrong was adamant.
After he left, however, Steven Giacoletto and his son Brandon asked to address the commission, saying they were confused.
They own a grocery store in Helper and wanted to open the cheaper type-2 agency inside their store. They told commissioners they were led to believe the mayor was going to mention their proposal as an alternative to the type-3 stand-alone. But he never did.
They also mentioned that their grocery store is a competitor to the grocery store the mayor owns on Main Street, near the location his proposed type-3 agency would operate.
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Behind closed doors • Utah Liquor Control Commission Chairman Richard Sperry, likely worn down by months of listening to applicants begging for liquor licenses, with some even weeping while explaining they will go out of business without a license, gave restaurant owners a ray of hope during the commission meeting Tuesday.
So what is that ray of hope? It's a secret.
Sperry told the dozens of applicants who went away empty handed — because the state has run out of club and restaurant liquor licenses — they may be happy soon because lawmakers are working to free up more permits for restaurants.
When pressed about the forthcoming great news, Sperry said when he had a conversation with Sen. John Valentine, R-Orem, the lawmaker who drafts state liquor laws, Valentine "swore me to secrecy."
Open government at its best.
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Take two aspirin and go to bed • After Utah Highway Patrol Trooper Dean Coy's patrol car was slammed into while he was stopped in the median on Interstate 15 in Kaysville on Sunday, doctors wanted to operate on his severely dislocated shoulder, but they needed authorization from Workers Compensation of Utah.
They're still waiting while Coy is home dealing with continuing pain, say his colleagues.
Coy was treated at a local hospital and released, but the attending physician said he needed surgery. Coy's sergeant, Shane Nordfelt, filled out the paperwork for Workers Comp approval on Sunday, turned it into the Human Resources Department and received a confirmation number on Monday.
Doctors initially told Coy it might take several days for Workers Comp approval for the surgery. It looks now like it will be sooner than that, but he's still had to endure while the red tape is processed.
Coy was called by Workers Comp on Tuesday, a day after the claim was made, and was told it would take another 24 hours to process the claim. So the earliest he may be scheduled for surgery is Wednesday.