More microbreweries are expected to take root in St. Paul following passage of an ordinance Wednesday by the City Council, permitting four times the annual production of beer barrels previously allowed.
Under the new ordinance, St. Paul microbrewers will now be able to produce up to 20,000 barrels a year in traditional neighborhoods and business districts with a conditional-use permit. Microbreweries that produce the old limit of 5,000 barrels annually won't need a permit for those areas of the city.
The ordinance tops off a year in which the city amended long-standing alcohol production regulations that had been in place since Prohibition ended in 1933.
After the state loosened restrictions, the City Council in March permitted brewers producing fewer than 5,000 barrels a year to sell beer where it is made, in on-site taprooms.
Wednesday's ordinance also allows for distilleries and wineries in St. Paul, subject to size and zone restrictions.
KEVIN DUCHSCHERE
@KDuchschere
