ANN ARBOR, Mich. – The Big House will remain dry: The University of Michigan isn't planning to open up its football stadium for alcohol sales
Athletic director Dave Brandon told The Ann Arbor News (http://bit.ly/1fQSY9Z ) that Michigan Stadium will remain alcohol-free. The liability and risk of serving alcohol at a stadium where many fans are under the legal drinking age are among the factors that drove the decision.
"You've got to set up places to vendor this stuff and you've got to make sure you're selling it to the right people, not the wrong people, and then you've got to deal with all the ramifications of alcohol being served in an area where you've got a lot of young people and a lot of underage people," he said.
Supporting new infrastructure at the Big House in Ann Arbor and managing alcohol sales would also be costly, he said.
"Sometimes people lose track of the fact that we have to organize and manage 110,000 to 115,000 people all in one tight space, and get them in there and out of there safely," he said. "I don't think serving alcohol is going to make that job any easier."
Alcohol was sold at Michigan Stadium under a special arrangement for the NHL's Winter Classic game Jan. 1 between the Detroit Red Wings the Toronto Maple Leafs. That move required approval from state lawmakers.
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