When Americans toasted the end of prohibition at their local pubs in 1933, the taps were still on hold in East Lansing.

In this college town, liquor was banned long before national prohibition and would continue to be outlawed for another 35 years. The authors of the city's 1907 charter established East Lansing as a dry town to protect students from alcohol.

"You couldn't serve liquor, you couldn't even give it away," said Jack Patriarche, 86, a longtime East Lansing resident. Coral Gables, just east of the city, was the nearest place where alcohol was served.

Patriarche, city manager from 1948 to 1976, was at the forefront of college-town politics in 1968 when the city council modified the charter, allowing the controversial beverage inside East Lansing.

The floodgates were open and change ensued downtown that would soon impact the surrounding residential neighborhoods - and over time, the entire landscape of East Lansing.

"For many people, it was the ruination of our community when they went wet," said City Councilmember Beverly Baten, a permanent resident since 1966. Baten's father-in-law was among those who feared the consequences of changing the liquor policy.

East Lansing and university officials have linked alcohol to several embarrassing markers in city history.

· The city's first large-scale problem with alcohol in the post-dry town era occurred during Cedar Fest, a student block party held in Cedar Village during the 1970s and '80s. Fed up with problems stemming from the twice-yearly event, police formed a blockade around the student apartment complex in 1987.

· In 1997, about 400 party-goers were met by police after starting a bonfire in the middle of Gunson Street.

· In 1998, a riot ensued after students protested a ban of alcohol on Munn Field, a popular tailgating spot.

· Disturbances after NCAA tournament basketball games last year and in 1999 caused hundreds of thousands of dollars in damage and numerous arrests.

These days, East Lansing police Capt. Juli Liebler said her department devotes significant resources to dealing with alcohol-related problems.

"Obviously, we see the extreme results of excessive alcohol consumption," Liebler said. "A lot of our crime is a result of excessive drinking - malicious destruction of property, assaults, fights, date rape - and all the things that go along with it."

In the fall, the City Council passed the party-noise ordinance that called for jail time and steep fines for hosts of unruly gatherings. Each year, police cite hundreds of minors for underage drinking.

Since East Lansing started welcoming alcohol inside city limits, police and city administrators say it has been a constant struggle to manage it and its effects.

And it is likely here to stay.

"It would be hard to keep alcohol out of the city," Liebler said. "The bars would be closed, but you'd still probably have the parties.

"And people would probably still go to the borders."

Drawing borders

Those seeking the perfect tonic during East Lansing's prohibition didn't have to look far.

To the east, they found Coral Gables. Now a family restaurant, the Grand River Avenue establishment in Meridian Township was erected in the 1920s as a fancy roadhouse. In its early days, the eatery was a popular hangout and dance hall, attracting famous bands.

In the 1930s, after the national prohibition was lifted, Coral Gables, 2838 East Grand River Ave., gained its liquor license - making it the nearest legal place for many students and residents to drink and dance.

"We were the only dance hall from downtown Lansing all the way to Williamston," said Alex Vanis, who purchased Coral Gables in 1968, just months before the city lifted its ban on alcohol. "And we weren't that busy because there wasn't that much drinking."

Patriarche, a longtime city official, said "people who wanted to drink were going to the outskirts. There were bars all around East Lansing, but there was nothing in East Lansing."

Like Coral Gables, other bars were constructed within reach of East Lansing in hope of gaining the college crowd and city residents who couldn't purchase beverages in their own city.

Among the most popular were Mac's Bar, 2700 E. Michigan Ave., Paul Revere's, 2703 E. Grand River Ave., and Dagwood's, 2803 E. Kalamazoo St.

Because those bars weren't near the heart of East Lansing, drunken driving was common and troublesome.

"We issued tickets for driving intoxicated long before we had liquor in East Lansing," Patriarche said.

And the policy didn't "mean that people didn't drink" inside East Lansing, he added.

"We had some of the most beautiful bars in the basements of East Lansing."

For decades, East Lansing's policy went unchallenged as students and residents sidestepped the city to find alcohol.

In the late 1960s, developers unveiled plans to build a hotel at the corner of Abbott Road and Albert Avenue. Before they built the hotel, they wanted the City Council to change the city's charter allowing all restaurants and hotels to sell alcohol, Patriarche said.

"You had people for it and you had people against it," Patriarche said.

Eventually, in November of 1968, the charter was modified to allow for alcohol sales. By that time, developers lost their financing for the hotel and it was never built.

Nevertheless, the door opened for establishments to begin applying for licenses to sell alcohol.

The nature of Vanis' business at Coral Gables didn't immediately change because it took time for restaurants and bars to gain licenses to sell alcohol.

"It wasn't like there were bars waiting to get licenses," Vanis said. "At that time, East Lansing's downtown was mostly retail stores.

"They had to get rid of all those stores to make room for places with liquor licenses."

The Albert Pick Hotel, constructed on Grand River Avenue and Saginaw Street, was the first to gain a liquor license. During the next few years, several bars and restaurants were awarded licenses.

Alcohol evolution

To Coral Gables, the policy shift meant the longtime establishment would have to adjust to meet the changing needs of its customers.

"The place evolved with the times because East Lansing has changed," said Stuart Vanis, who runs the business along with his father. "The bars opened up on Albert and Grand River, so it was close for the students to walk there.

"So, we became a full-scale restaurant, that's how we survived - by being willing to change with the times."

Trying to maintain order as the culture changes has been a trying task for the City Council.

"There is always going to be a problem when you have alcohol and young people," said East Lansing City Councilmember Bill Sharp, a former police officer who has lived in the city since 1948.

When East Lansing was dry 35 years ago, Sharp said social standards and expectations were different.

"We certainly didn't have as many minors in possession as we do today," he said. "We certainly didn't have the fights and the noise, because we didn't have the bars."

Sharp says he sees change in the way the city deals with alcohol. He believes the merchants are more responsible now and the police are better educated on how to deal with alcohol-related problems.

"Did we have more problems after we had it?" Patriarche asked. "Sure we did, because we had licenses right in town.

"Students didn't have to go that far to have a drink. We had people that were intoxicated walking on the sidewalks."

Four decades ago, East Lansing was known as a city where alcohol wasn't allowed.

Now, city officials say its name is stained by the unruly behavior that comes as a result of excessive drinking.

Patriarche said, "Once you started serving it in the city limits, you had the problems that other people had with it."

Steve Eder is the State News projects reporter. He can be reached at ederstev@msu.edu.