Palatine eliminates 4 a.m. liquor licenses for two bars

When Palatine amended its liquor code to allow video gaming licenses earlier this week, it also approved earlier closing times for the two establishments holding its late-hour liquor licenses.

Gone will be the 4 a.m. closing times for Gator's, 1719 Rand Road, and Durty Nellie's, 180 N. Smith St.

Nellie's new closing time, effective July 1, will be 3 a.m. on weekends until Labor Day weekend, then 2 a.m. after that. Gator's will remain open until 3 a.m. seven days a week.

Durty Nellie's owner Jim Dolezal said he has had the late closing license since 2003. He said the business will be impacted by the change, although he added that his latest closing time has been 3 a.m. since COVID-19.

"Durty Nellie's is known to be a late-night place. It's going to change the dynamics," he said. "When you're open till 4, people come from other towns. We're going to lose all that. It's going to be more reliant on people from Palatine."

Officials said the change was motivated by public safety concerns related to people coming from out of town for the later-closing bars, leading to incidents of fights and vandalism.