Tuscaloosa Council Approves Alcohol Sales For Coleman Coliseum

TUSCALOOSA, AL — The Tuscaloosa City Council On Tuesday approved to grant an alcohol retail license for Coleman Coliseum, which opens the door for selling of beer, wine and seltzers in the venue.

District 6 Councilman John Faile was the sole vote in opposition to the alcohol sales.

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Managed by Levy Premium Food Service, the alcohol license was approved for more than 30 days and will not include the selling of liquor.

When asked by District 4 Councilman Lee Busby about the timetable for after the city passed the measure, City Attorney Scott Holmes said it would go into effect immediately, as far as the city is concerned. However, the final hurdle will be approval by the Alabama Alcoholic Beverage Control Board.

"They could just be waiting on this [approved measure] to be the last piece," Holmes said. "So it should be pretty quickly."

Levy — who also manages alcohol sales for venues at Arkansas and Texas A&M — handles food service for concessions in Coleman Coliseum, in addition to Bryant-Denny Stadium, and said alcoholic beverages would be sold at normal concession stands, with all patrons required to show their identifications.

The measure will now go on to the Alabama ABC board for consideration and potential approval. If approved by the state, Crimson Tide fans will then be able to purchase alcoholic beverages at Alabama basketball games and gymnastics meets.

The Southeastern Conference first lifted its on-campus venue ban on alcohol sales in 2019, allowing schools to decide on the issue for themselves.

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