Stadiums struggle to prevent illegal sales — how does the Metrodome handle it?

Despite prevention measures, students say alcohol is sold illegally at the Metrodome.

Alcohol was flowing freely on Saturday âÄî ID or no ID âÄî as Gophers fans tailgated in anticipation of the season opener. ItâÄôs common to see a level of permissiveness, as tailgating is seen as part of the college football experience, epidemiologist Toben Nelson said. ItâÄôs a different story inside the Metrodome , where a number of regulations limit alcohol access, but disruptive behavior by intoxicated fans is an issue in stadiums across the country. For University epidemiologist Traci Toomey , the media attention given to this issue helped motivate a recent study on illegal alcohol sales at professional sports stadiums. Toomey was the lead researcher for the study, which found that alcohol was sold to fans who appeared obviously intoxicated 74 percent of the time, and sold to underage or underage-looking fans 18 percent of the time. Both types of illegal sales were almost three times more likely to occur in the stands than in concession booths. Chris Kohlmeier , general manager of Centerplate , the Metrodome concessionaire, is aware of the issues that accompany alcohol sales, which account for 35 to 40 percent of their sales. Centerplate does alcohol awareness training for all employees who serve alcohol, and has an alcohol awareness team that monitors the concourse, seating areas, servers and fans. Additional limitations are imposed during Gophers games. Fans are limited to one beer per purchase, while professional sports fans are allowed two. Also, alcohol is not sold in the student sections at Gophers games. For both professional and college games, alcohol sales are cut off at the end of the third quarter. But do these efforts work? Samantha Fung , a retail merchandising junior, said she has heard itâÄôs fairly easy to buy alcohol if the person has a fake ID. Ryan Ang , biology sophomore, agreed. âÄúI think if the IDs donâÄôt scan, they just punch in the birthday,âÄù he said, referring to concession workers scanning IDs for alcohol sales. However, Sean Higgins , architecture senior, said itâÄôs âÄúliterally impossibleâÄù to buy alcohol underage at the Metrodome. University police Chief Greg Hestness is also no stranger to dealing with alcohol-related incidents. He said that at every game there are a number of minor citations and a few people who end up in detox, as well as some alcohol-related disputes in the stands. Hestness said he feels Centerplate does a fairly good job of checking IDs at the Metrodome, and added that he had even been carded when attending a game off-duty. He emphasized that, despite these measures, underage or intoxicated fans do find ways to continue consuming. TCF BANK STADIUM Toomey said she hopes campus administrators pay attention to this study as they consider what role alcohol should play at TCF Bank Stadium. âÄúItâÄôs a tough job to control alcohol sales at these events,âÄù she said. âÄúIf they go down that path, are they going to be able to put the right controls in place?âÄù Ang said he sees alcohol being sold to intoxicated people at the Metrodome and hopes sales are better regulated at the new stadium. Hestness said he expects alcohol sales will be limited to club rooms and private suites at the new stadium. A 2005 USA Today survey found that seven of the 11 Big Ten universities prohibit the sale of alcoholic beverages at athletics events. Hestness said he âÄúhopes that itâÄôll be a pretty sober affair âÄî let the enthusiasm be natural, rather than chemical.âÄù