This guide from Elmgate Lending in Opelika, Alabama points to the Alabama ABC Board's licensing pages (checked 2026-10-24) for Lee County, AL restaurants, bars and hotels, and explains where the license shows up in a funding request. Rules, fees and dates are for the Board to confirm.
License Codes a Restaurant, Lounge or Hotel Bar Reads First
The Board's License Types and Fees page (checked 2026-10-24) lists each license type with a code and a state fee. The types a restaurant, lounge or hotel bar reads first include:
| Code | License type |
|---|---|
| 010 | Lounge retail liquor, Class I |
| 011 | Lounge retail liquor, Class II (package) |
| 020 | Restaurant retail liquor |
| 040 | Retail beer (on or off premises) |
| 060 | Retail table wine (on or off premises) |
| 140 | Special events retail |
| 220 | Brewpub |
| 300 | Hospitality management program |
| 310 | Food or beverage truck |
Which type fits depends on what the business sells and how. The state fee for each type is on the Board's page.
Alabama ABC License Application: When a Restaurant Needs It and Where a Lender Sees It
The Board's How to Apply page says an in-state applicant prints the pre-application, contacts its division office to schedule an appointment, and brings the completed pre-application and every document on the checklist (form LCD-2) to that appointment. The page also links a background check application and a membership affidavit for owners whose stake in the business is under 10%.
For a restaurant opening or changing hands, the license timeline sits inside the funding timeline. A partner funding a restaurant purchase may want to know when the new owner's license is expected, because alcohol sales are part of the revenue the purchase relies on.
Alabama Liquor License Requirements and the Records a Lender Asks a Hotel For
A hotel with a bar or restaurant holds the license that fits its service. When a hotel asks for funding, a partner may read the license alongside the hotel's records, because food and beverage revenue is part of the income it is judging.
- The current ABC license and its type.
- Food and beverage revenue reported separately from room revenue.
- Liquor tax reports filed with the city, where they apply.
- The lease or management agreement for the bar, if someone else runs it.
Hotel loans covers FF&E and renovations.
Alabama ABC License Renewal: Keeping a Restaurant Current Before a Funding Request
The Board's License Renewal page (checked 2026-10-24) says all 2025-2026 permits expired at midnight on September 30, 2026, that renewal had to happen before that date, that the fee is not prorated, and that renewing the wrong license type brings no refund. The page links the Board's renewal system.
For a funding request, a lapsed license is a red flag: a partner reading a restaurant's request expects alcohol sales to continue, and a license that is not current puts that income in question.
Alabama Liquor License Search: When a Hotel Needs It and Where a Lender Sees It
A buyer looking at a hotel with a bar, or a restaurant with a liquor license, confirms the seller's license status before the purchase closes. Ask the seller for a copy of the current license and the renewal receipt, and ask the division office how a change of ownership is handled for that license type.
A funding partner on a purchase may ask the same questions, and an answer from the division office, kept with the purchase agreement, saves time.
Timing is the part buyers underestimate. If the new owner's license is not issued by the closing date, the business may not be able to sell alcohol for a stretch after the keys change hands. A purchase agreement can set the closing date around the license, or include a management arrangement that the division office approves, so alcohol sales do not stop. A funding partner reading the purchase will look for how that gap is handled, because those sales are part of the income the loan relies on.
Lee County, AL on the ABC Board's Wet List and the Division D Office in Auburn, AL
The Board's wet cities list shows Lee County as wet, and Chambers County too. Its Licensing Divisions page lists the Division D office in Auburn, AL, which covers Chambers, Coosa, Lee, Macon, Russell and Tallapoosa counties. That is the office an Opelika, AL applicant contacts to schedule an appointment.
Opelika's own Revenue Department page lists a liquor tax report among its forms, so a licensed business also has city filings to keep current. The Opelika business license guide, restaurant loans, equipment financing, the Opelika, AL business page, all guides and the six funding types compared cover the rest. Lee County, AL had 19 drinking places and 132 full-service restaurants with paid employees in 2023 (County Business Patterns).
By Elmgate Lending ยท Updated