Minneapolis mayor signs “taproom ordinance,” clearing the way for more beer

With speculation frothing about where Surly Brewing Company could locate their new event space - the beer company is currently in Brooklyn Center -- Minneapolis Mayor R.T. Rybak Wednesday signed a new ordinance allowing breweries to sell pints of their beer on site.

The ordinance creates a new type of liquor license in the city called a taproom license. To be eligible for the license breweries may not produce more than 250,000 barrels of beer a year. The new Minneapolis law follows a recent change to state law, the "Surly Bill," lifting restrictions on breweries' right to sell pints of beer on site. The change also allowed cities to license the practice.

In a press release Mayor Rybak, whose great-grandfather owned and operated Rybak Brewery in New Prague, Minnesota in the 1920s, said:

"We're making it easier for Minnesota beer drinkers to drink Minnesota beer and create jobs here," said Mayor Rybak. "Sales of pints on site will also grow the local beer economy by lowering the barriers for entry for new breweries, which will allow them to hit the ground running. And it complements Minneapolis' burgeoning local food economy that is creating new businesses and even more jobs."

Mayor Rybak signed the ordinance in the presence of Omar Ansari, president and founder of Surly Brewing Company of Brooklyn Center.

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