The Crested Butte News Serving the Gunnison Valley since 1999
Working with state to renew expired license
Last week, Crested Butte Mountain Resort (CBMR) stopped serving alcohol at its Paradise Warming House after learning that the establishment’s liquor license had never been submitted for renewal.
The move affects the warming house only, and according to CBMR director of innovations and relations Erica Mueller, the resort and its attorney are working with the state of Colorado and the county to fix the situation.
“Once we learned this on Wednesday afternoon, we voluntarily shut down all liquor sales and took all alcoholic beverages out of the bar area. Our attorney has spoken with the state and we’re going through the process of rectifying the situation. In addition, as of yesterday we have submitted our permit application to the county,” Mueller wrote in an email.
The statutory requirement is 30 days, so the resort is anticipating an early February reopening. Mueller also said that it’s unclear how long the warming house bar operated on an expired license, but it was a surprise to everyone that the renewal was overlooked. “We have changed our structure to make sure this never happens again,” she said.
At this time, Mueller says, the resort is unable to comment on whether there will a fine for letting the license lapse. In the meantime, the cafeteria and the bar at Paradise Warming House are open but no alcohol will be sold. Because the resort holds separate liquor licenses for each of its facilities, no other CBMR bars or restaurants have been affected.
“It is an unfortunate situation, but we are doing everything we can to expedite the license. For the time being, we are redirecting people to other facilities on the mountain at Ten Peaks and the Ice Bar and also locations in the base area. At Paradise, the bar is open, serving non-alcoholic beverages for those looking to see the game on the big screen and warm up a bit on the mountain,” Mueller said.
