Do you want to order liquor online like pizza? KC needs reasonable rules first

The Kansas City Council will take another step this week into the brave new world of online purchasing and home delivery.

This time, it involves alcohol. An ordinance to be discussed Wednesday would allow Kansas Citians to order and purchase alcoholic beverages online or with an app on a smart phone, then have those purchases delivered to their doorstep.

If the proposal passes, you could buy wine and whiskey like you buy a pizza, or a sandwich. That’s a change from the current ordinance, which requires in-person purchase of alcoholic beverages.

The City Council should proceed with caution.

Home delivery is here to stay and will define retailing in the years ahead. Many cities already allow home delivery of alcohol, including St. Louis.

Amazon is involved in delivering alcohol. Aldi just began home delivery of liquor in the United Kingdom. An app called “Drizly” promises liquor delivery within an hour to some locations.

But booze isn’t pizza. The city should consider reasonable restrictions before making it easier to purchase intoxicating beverages by phone or computer.

There are safeguards in the ordinance now under consideration. Only licensed dealers could sell liquor online and deliver it, for example.

Alcohol could not be sold and delivered to anyone under the age of 21. The proposal also says “habitual drunkards” can’t buy online, and alcohol can’t be provided to a customer who is already intoxicated or appears to be.

These restrictions will give delivery drivers enormous responsibility for enforcement. Will drivers check IDs before dropping off a case of wine or several bottles of gin? Would a driver seriously confront an intoxicated customer, despite the possible risk?

Will home delivery of alcohol mean more enforcement responsibilities for overworked police officers? What are the penalties for selling alcohol to minors through an app?

The City Council should explore these issues fully before agreeing to any changes in the current ordinance.

Kansas City, like most cities, is adjusting to an onslaught of disruptive web-based businesses. First, it was ride-sharing firms such as Uber. Within the past few weeks, rental scooters began popping up on Kansas City streets, to the delight of some residents and frustration of others.

Now, web-based alcohol purchasing is at hand.

The proposed ordinance is not sponsored by any council member. It was endorsed, documents say, by the city’s Alcoholic Beverage Advisory Group.

Perhaps the city believes home alcohol delivery is inevitable.

Maybe it is. Before it starts, though, the City Council should assure itself and the community that reasonable safeguards are in place to prevent additional problems in our neighborhoods.