Last call an hour later in Naperville?
Naperville bar patrons may get to stay out an hour later the night before Thanksgiving.
City councilmen are considering extending bar hours although some have concerns it could be troublesome to allow an extra hour of drinking.
Restaurants and bars currently must stop serving alcohol at 1 a.m. Monday through Friday. However, the Restaurant Association of Naperville has said the Wednesday before Thanksgiving commonly known as "Black Wednesday" is the busiest day of the year and requested a one-hour extension. That would mean bars could choose to serve until 2 a.m. on Thanksgiving.
Roughly 113 establishments would be eligible for the extension but city staff say they only expect a handful would take advantage of the extended hours.
Mayor George Pradel said he has walked through bars the night before Thanksgiving and didn't notice any trouble, just college students home for the long weekend looking to visit with each other. He said the city's liquor commission supports the extension.
But Councilman Richard Furstenau fears where such an allowance will lead.
"I'm just afraid it's a step on a slippery slope and we're going to have the whole town at two or three o'clock in the morning and I'm not for that at all," he said.
Councilman Kenn Miller pointed out bars are already allowed to stay open until 2 a.m. on Saturdays and Sundays.
"This goes on all the time," he said. "The question is what's going to be different on Thanksgiving Eve?"
Councilman Doug Krause suggested trying the extension for a year and Councilman Bob Fieseler said he may support that suggestion because he is conflicted about the issue.
"I'm in favor of letting people take responsibility for their own actions ... but then I'm reminded of my mother's admonition 'nothing good ever happens after midnight,'" Fieseler said.
Police Chief David Dial declined to give his opinion to the Daily Herald but said he will follow the direction the council gives him.
Councilmen did not vote Tuesday and could do so June 15.