Williams-Brice contractor must reapply for liquor license, state says

The contractor that runs concessions at the University of South Carolina’s football stadium has until midnight on Aug. 31 to reapply for the liquor license it received earlier this month, state regulators said.

Aramark Sports and Entertainment LLC applied for a two-year liquor license to sell beer, wine and liquor at Williams-Brice Stadium in June and received it earlier this month. However, all liquor licenses in Richland County expire at midnight on Aug. 31, 2018, no matter when they were acquired, said Department of Revenue spokeswoman Bonnie Swingle.

“While the license application is for two years, all alcohol beverage license renewals are on the same schedule, which is determined by which county the establishment is located,” Swingle said in an email. “If the applicant wants to keep these licenses for future events, they will need to go through the renewal process. If the applicant doesn’t renew, then the license would no longer be active.”

Aramark will seek to renew the two-year permit, USC spokesman Jeff Stensland said. As of 12:30 p.m. Monday, Aramark had not submitted an application to renew its license, Swingle said.

Whether or not Aramark reapplies for the license, alcohol cannot be sold to general admissions patrons during athletic events, according to Southeastern Conference rules.

“There is no attempt to want to sell alcohol at the games,” Stensland said when contacted for a previous article on this topic. Rather, the stadium would sell alcohol only at “private, nonathletic events” such as last week’s Jay-Z/Beyoncé concert, he said.

This story was originally published August 27, 2018 at 1:49 PM.