Municipalities would be able to issue retail liquor licenses to qualified buyers looking to redevelop historic taverns
TRENTON -- The Revolutionary-era Eagle Tavern has sat vacant for years after several attempts to run it as a restaurant failed. But a bill that cleared an Assembly panel last week could help pave the way for its redevelopment.
Assemblymen Reed Gusciora (D-Mercer) and Tim Eustace (D-Bergen) sponsored a bill that would allow municipalities to issue retail liquor licenses to qualified buyers looking to redevelop historic taverns into 21st-century eating and drinking establishments.
Gusciora said no developer is willing to undertake the costs of redeveloping the site because of the liquor license limitations in the city, but is hopeful that the bill would help persuade someone to reopen the tavern.
"One of Trenton's biggest strengths is its history," he said. "The Eagle Tavern is one of the city's oldest buildings and served as a popular place for residents to socialize and for politicians to meet. ... This could help bring back a building that is historically important to our city and our state, provide the city with much-needed revenue and further the momentum slowly brewing on South Broad Street."
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The Eagle Tavern was built in 1765 as a private house. In 1817, it opened as a tavern and remained so until 1890 when it became a boarding house. Over time, the tavern had grown popular with South Ward politicians and patrons from the nearby Eagle Racetrack.
A Morrisville, Pa., man bought it in 1942, but soon sold it after he was unable to get a liquor license. It became an apartment house, then sat vacant until the city bought it in 1965.
Following renovations, the tavern reopened in 1980 as a restaurant. It closed three years later, reopened, then closed again. The latest attempt came in 1988, but it closed four years later after several break-ins and a failure to turn a profit.
In 2003, the city spent more than $700,000 on a new roof, windows, chimneys, front porch and repointing bricks with the hopes of attracting potential buyers, but it's unclear if the city ever requested bids.
Under the bill (A3404), towns and cities could issue a retail liquor license to sell alcoholic beverages for on-premise consumption to the highest-qualified bidder of an abandoned historic tavern -- without being subject to population limitations.
The building would have had to been built before 1920 and be listed on the state and national registers. The sale and service of alcohol on-site would also have to have been its primary business before 1920.
The bill was released Dec. 10 by the Assembly Regulatory Oversight Committee in a 4-1 vote.
Cristina Rojas may be reached at crojas@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @CristinaRojasTT. Find The Times of Trenton on Facebook.