Commission staff told the Villa Park Liquor Control Commission on Nov. 25 that about 10 renewal applications have been received and that several businesses are seeking to downgrade their license categories following a recent fee increase. "I don't have an exact number of how many people we've gotten the, applications in yet, but I would say probably about 10 so far," Julie, a staff liaison, said.

Staff listed multiple requested changes: Euros Express wants to go from a full-pour license to beer-and-wine only and eliminate gaming; Mariscos Miramar has removed gaming; Highview, Chuck E. Cheese and Simons are moving to quad E classifications; Epic is shifting from a banquet license to quad L; Lunar and the Curling Club asked to move to quad A; Moore Brewing requested a change from double A to quad A; several other businesses either had not responded or were still deciding. "So we're seeing a lot of the downgrading of licenses," Julie said, adding that the pattern is "to be expected" given the fee adjustments.

Commissioners also discussed how unpaid municipal collections affect renewals. Julie explained that red cells in the report "are indicating that we did not receive a payment for that month" and that staff are working on collections; unpaid amounts, she said, will affect whether licenses are renewed. Commissioners asked staff to include the gaming-revenue and collections report in future meeting packets so members can review the details before meetings.

The commission discussed one owner who had asked for a payment plan. Julie said staff are "working with them at this point to try and figure something out," but warned that installment plans create logistical burdens for staff and could require additional fees to cover staff time. Commissioner discussion included a proposal to assess a small administrative fee for installment agreements to offset staff tracking costs.

Julie also described the interaction with state licensing: the municipality's license is required for the state to issue its separate license. "So if we were to revoke a license and to let the state know theirs would be revoked... I think we would be probably nicer to reinstate it, you know, when it was time," Julie said, noting that revocation could force a business to reapply with the state.

No formal votes on license downgrades or payment-plan policy were taken at the meeting. Commissioners asked staff to continue outreach to nonresponding businesses, to include relevant reports in future packets, and to return with recommendations on payment-plan procedures and any proposed ordinance language if changes are needed. The commission did approve the meeting minutes from Oct. 28 by roll-call vote earlier in the meeting.