CHEYENNE, Wyo. — On Tuesday, the Cheyenne City Council denied the transfer of a retail liquor license from Poor Richard’s Restaurant to Andiamo 307.
The council’s 5–4 vote to decline the transfer means that the demolished restaurant keeps the license until it expires in March 2023. After that, the city can reissue it to another business.
Liquor licenses are sought after in Cheyenne, as Wyoming state law limits the number of available liquor licenses per city based on population. Earlier this year, the council saw 11 applicants competing for one available full retail liquor license, which was ultimately awarded to The Railspur.
Poor Richard’s Restaurant closed during the COVID-19 pandemic and was demolished in June 2021. The restaurant’s owners transferred their retail liquor license to the physical address of 1808 O’Neil Ave., the current location of Andiamo 307. However, council approval is needed in order for Andiamo 307 to access the license for the allotted two years.
Councilmembers disagreed about the transfer, with Ward III Councilmember Michelle Aldrich concerned that the license would be unused if it did go through as Andiamo 307 is under construction. She recommended a transfer with an addition of a late March deadline; if the license is unused by then, the city would take and reissue it.
“We have people waiting for liquor licenses in our community,” Aldrich said. “It’s fair to the city so we can start collecting sales tax dollars on revenue from that license and for those people waiting for licenses to have this in place.”
However, Ward II Councilmember Mark Rinne countered that the four-month turnaround period for using the license was too short and that Andiamo 307 had the potential to become a successful business with the license when completed.
“When I first saw where (the owners of Andiamo 307) were working, I thought, ‘What on earth are they thinking, how can they make this work?'” Rinne said. “But I think they could turn this into something cool and it would be a great addition to the area.”
The transfer request can be viewed in full below:
