Liquor license applications (inactive)

Note: new liquor license applications are no longer being added to EveryBlock Chicago.

About liquor license applications

An establishment serving alcohol can change the complexion of a neighborhood. In this section of EveryBlock, you can find recent liquor license applications near your home — before licenses are actually issued by the city.

Each liquor license application comes from the Chicago Department of Business Affairs and Licensing and provides the address attached to the application, the application date, the applicant's name and the name of the business.

Also included is the license type, which provides you with more information about the establishment.

Source

The data is retrieved from the New Liquor License applications received in the last 6 weeks list published by the Chicago Department of Business Affairs and Licensing. The list is updated each business day, and we at EveryBlock retrieve data each night.

How does the application process work?

Applicants provide detailed information about ownership and financing of their business and must pass inspections from several city departments, including the departments of Health, Fire and Buildings. The city usually makes a decision in 45 to 90 days.

Neighborhood feedback is taken into consideration. Each legal voter registered within 250 feet of a proposed liquor license establishment is notified when an application is filed. In some areas ("dry precincts"), it may not be possible to obtain a liquor license. Liquor licenses can't be issued to an establishment located within 100 feet of a school, church, hospital, day-care center, home for the aged or indigent or library.

A final note: Because of a technical issue, licenses for several weeks during summer 2009 do not appear on EveryBlock. We are working with the Department of Business Affairs and Licensing to obtain the missing records.