File Photo The Grain Hopper, located just outside Minot, falls under the county’s 1 a.m. closure requirement, even though nearby Minot city-licensed bars can be open until 2 a.m.

Rural bars will continue to be required to close at 1 a.m. in Ward County.

The Ward County Commission voted 2-3 on Tuesday on a liquor license resolution that would have pushed back the allowed closing time to 2 a.m., as permitted in state law. The Minot City Council voted to extend hours for bars in the city to 2 a.m. in November.

“We would like it to be fair – just like an equal footing with the competition,” said Byron Newnam with The Grain Hopper, located on the edge of Minot.

Newnam was the only one to provide input at a public hearing held by the commission Tuesday.

“I just kind of wish Minot wouldn’t have done what they did,” Commissioner John Pietsch said. “They kind of opened the door to something that probably wasn’t necessary. I’ve gotten several calls from people and not one individual was in favor of this. I visited with two bar owners and they both wished that Minot wouldn’t have done what they did.”

“I agree it’s a matter of fairness when you have a business located in the county, a block away from the city line,” Commissioner Shelly Weppler said. “It boils down to fairness. It boils down to the time should be determined, within the law, by the bar owner.”

Weppler and Alan Walter voted for the 2 a.m. bar closing, while Pietsch, John Fjeldahl and Jim Rostad voted against.