Cheers, Birmingham: Another Theater Will Let You Drink Booze

BIRMINGHAM, MI — Movie theaters in Birmingham shall be treated equally, at least when it comes to booze. The City Commission recently voted, 7-0, to amend a zoning ordinance to allow the eight-screen Birmingham 8 theater to serve alcohol.

The Emagine Palladium has an alcohol license, attorneys for Birmingham 8 owners Ted Fuller and Bill Herting told the Birmingham City Commission at a recent meeting. The theater plans to convert a concessions area on the second floor to a small bar, but must first be granted a Class C liquor license.

The theater owners’ attorney, Kelly Allen, pointed out that the theater had a liquor license in the 1970s. The theater opened in 1927, was purchased by Central Park Properties in 1976, and was acquired by Herting and Fuller in 2015.. They added new seating, upgraded concessions and added more screens, among other upgrades, The Birmingham Eccentric reported.

“It is such an icon,” Allen told the commission. “It has the only original marquee left in Oakland County I believe.”

Among the issues raised at the meeting were that the theater could expand its uses and host concerts or show adult films. City officials were unconcerned, saying the liquor license holders would need special permission from the city for entertainment events, and that adult films are already regulated by the city.

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