DeKalb is often bashed by students for its lack of night life. There are not enough bars in this university town masquerading as a rural one.

The north side of town, near Greek Row, has only one tavern – and plenty of people who don’t mind a good drink. Class A bars are those with the highest privilege, including no minimum food requirement and the ability to be open until 2 a.m., when most places are shouting at you to leave by 1 a.m.

A single bar for such a high concentration of customers presents many problems, not the least of which is the fact that to get to a Class A bar, residents of Greek Row are often forced to drive.

I would not expect a student to walk from downtown DeKalb or West Lincoln Highway to Hillcrest Drive after a night of drinking. Someone who has too much to drink would be less likely to use the good judgement to walk home, and the great distance and major streets they would need to cross don’t add up to a safe situation.

If the city of DeKalb is serious in their intentions of making their citizens safer, it needs to think of how people can get home safely. The ability to walk home allows for drinking college students to consume and not endanger others on their trek.

When DeKalb adds another Class A license, make sure officials know that the north side needs another bar within walking distance of a large group of customers.

The DeKalb Liquor Commission has expressed an open mind toward the addition of another Class A license but will advance with trepidation.

A responsible bar owner could easily win over DeKalb’s powers-that-be if they cooperatively work with the mayor and the liquor commissioner.