State College Borough Council is weighing whether to approve a liquor license transfer — and if it should come with any restrictions — for a proposed new Italian restaurant.
A public hearing was held during council’s meeting on Monday night for the transfer to Figo Italian, which is planned for the first floor of The Standard, 330 W. College Ave. Council members will further discuss the matter at a work session on April 10.
Figo would be a full-service, “upscale” Italian restaurant with a bar and separate side for a fast casual pizza counter, attorney Mark Kozar of Flaherty & O’Hara, which is representing the Philadelphia-based ownership group requesting the license. The group, which owns and operates multiple restaurants in the Philadelphia area under GLU Hospitality, including the only current Figo restaurant, also plans to open a breakfast and lunch spot called Bagels & Co. with no alcohol service in a separate space at The Standard.
The owners have an agreement to purchase the restaurant liquor license currently held by the former Luna 2 Woodgrill & Bar for 2609 E. College Ave. in College Township.
It marks the second time this year that council has been tasked with an application for an intermunicipal license transfer. In February, council approved, with minimal operating restrictions, a license transfer for Brothers Bar & Grill, which plans to open at 134 S. Allen St.
As he did with the Brothers request, Police Chief John Gardner recommended the transfer be approved with several restrictions, citing alcohol-related crime in the borough, the increased police responses that accompany alcohol-serving businesses and the already high density of establishments selling alcohol in the downtown.
Those proposed conditions included that the license cannot be moved to another location or transferred to another entity in the borough without council approval; alcoholic drinks could be sold in containers no larger than 22 ounces; drink specials and advertising of alcohol would not be permitted; alcohol could only be sold when food sales are available; and no smoking would be permitted anywhere on the premises.
Notably, Gardner did not recommend a requirement that at least 60% of revenue come from food sales. He noted that council chose not to adopt that recommendation for the Brothers license or a previous transfer request in 2019.
Gardner said he was “just trying to be consistent with what’s been done in the recent past.”
When the Pennsylvania Liquor Code was amended in 2002 to allow intermunicipal transfers within a county, it included a requirement for the receiving municipality’s approval when it has more than one restaurant liquor license per 3,000 population. While State College’s numbers have fluctuated, it has always been above the quota during that time, and today has 1.8 per 3,000 people, with 23 restaurant liquor licenses. In total, the borough has 42 retail establishments selling alcohol under various licenses, including 36 within five blocks of 330 W. College Ave., Gardner said.
State College had long placed strict conditions — particularly on the ratio of food to alcohol sales — on licenses transferred into the borough, but in the past few years has taken a more relaxed approach. The Brothers license included conditions requiring council approval for the license to be moved or transferred to another party in the borough, a requirement that food be available when alcohol is sold and a stipulation that the scope of the menu would not change.
The latter condition is intended to ensure that the establishment would not transform into a late-night bar geared solely toward college students. Kozar, who also represented Brothers, said Figo’s menu and price points mean it will not be a student bar.
Figo’s menu “pays homage to traditional Italian classics with a modern twist,” Kozar said, and “features a wide variety of antipasto, salad, pizzas, pasta specialties, steak, chicken and salmon entrees.” The owners plan to offer brunch and dinner menus, wine, beer and cocktails, as well as pizzas and sandwiches.
Tim Lu, one of Figo Italian’s owners and a Penn State graduate, said the menu changes seasonally to offer different items but not in scope.
The license transfer application lists meal prices ranging from $12 to $20 per person, though dinner entrees on the Philadelphia location’s menu range much higher.
“If you look at the menu I don’t think too many students are coming in for the $42 New York strip steak or the $38 ribeye steak,” Kozar said. “This is an upscale place. Perhaps their parents coming on parents weekend will take them there to eat, but it’s not the kind of place they’re going to come in and sit down and buy a $16 cocktail and a $42 steak. For that reason we don’t think you’re going to see a lot of students coming to that place unless their parents are buying.”
Councilman Peter Marshall voted against the Brothers license transfer because he was in favor of the 60% food sales requirement. He raised the issue again at the public hearing for Figo.
Kozar said imposing the food-to-alcohol sales ratio at this point would be “discriminatory.”
“You can’t say to one guy ‘you can’t do this,’ but say to the other guy ‘yeah you can do that.’ I would venture to guess that a court is not going to let you get away with that,” Kozar said. “Not that I’ve litigated it, but I’d be more than happy to.”
Lu told council that based on the Philadelphia location’s numbers, he anticipated the restaurant would be 70% food sales to 30% alcohol.
Marshall asked if the owners would voluntarily agree to a 60-40 ratio, but Kozar advised Lu not to answer.
Kozar added that the restaurant would employ ID scanners and that staff and managers would be certified in Pennsylvania’ Responsible Alcohol Management Program.
“The owners of Figo are proven responsible restaurant owners over the years and they’re making a significant investment in State College,” Kozar said. “And they’re going to protect this investment with well-trained and responsible management and employees.”
After discussing the transfer request at its noon work session on April 10, council is expected to consider final action during its meeting at 7 p.m. on May 1.
