The beach-area Alcohol Task Force held its second public meeting Monday, Nov. 27, this time focusing on the types of licenses needed to sell alcohol and rules sellers must follow to serve or sell beer, wine or spirits.
District 2 Councilman Kevin Faulconer, who presided over the meeting, invited representatives from the Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC) to educate the task force and the community of the application process for various liquor licenses.
At the start of the meeting Faulconer reiterated the tone he would like discussions to take and reminded the public to respect the opinions of others.
“We really like to have a good discussion and a good dialogue,” he said, “and I’ll just remind everybody as I did last time, everybody here has a valid opinion whether you happen to share it or not.”
Faulconer explained that the beginning of each meeting would be dedicated to public comment. It is suggested that residents who would like to comment arrive early to meetings to fill out a public comment card.
Unlike the first meeting, where public comment focused on the problems that alcohol can create, this meeting had many local bar and restaurant owners speaking up about the effect a beach ban on alcohol, or other restrictions could have on their livelihoods.
“To hear about people concerned about bars and all the bad stuff that goes on, it bothers me personally because I know how much work we put in to making sure that our business is run correctly and run responsibly and run the way it should be run because this is my life,” said Patrick Archbold, general manager of a bar in Pacific Beach. “This is my future and I need it run correctly so it doesn’t get shut down.”
Following the public comments, Jennifer Hill, district administrator for the San Diego ABC office, took the floor to explain how alcohol licenses are granted and regulated.
“My purpose here today is to educate you,” Hill said. “There’s a lot of misinformation out there, there’s a lot of confusion out there and I agree. Our statutes were written by legislatures and attorneys and they’re not the easiest to interpret or apply to every day.”
She began by explaining the differences between the most common types of licenses. On-Sale licenses for beer and wine as well as general, which includes beer and wine with the addition of distilled spirits, authorizes the sale of such items for consumption on the licensed premises, such as bars restaurants, and lodges. Off-Sale licenses for both beer and wine and general, authorize the sale of such items for consumption off the premises where sold, such as grocery stores and liquor stores.
“When a brand new license is applied for, the first thing is they have to do a 30-day posting,” Hill said.
She showed an example of the Public Notice of Application sign that must be posted at the applicant’s establishment.
“In a conspicuous place where any of the general public walking by can see it,” she said. “It can’t be behind tinted windows, it can’t be hidden behind signage, it can’t be on a door that’s propped open. It has to be completely uncovered. It’s actually a violation of law to remove it.”
Besides the notice at the establishment, residents within a 500-foot circumference of the establishment are sent a mailing called a Notice of Intention to Engage in the Sale of Alcoholic Beverages from the applicant letting them know that the establishment is applying for a liquor license.
“They have to do a mailing out to every residential property within 500 feet,” Hill said. “Now for property owners, the statute does not state they have to find out who the owner is and mail them a notice. So if you have renters, they could be tossing them.”
The third public notification is part of the ABC investigation process, where ABC staff physically inspects the establishment and the surrounding area and determines which residents are within a 100-foot circumference. ABC then sends those residents a second letter including information about what the applicant is proposing as part of their operation, such as live music and entertainment, dancing and hours of operation.
Finally, if the location is in a high crime or over-concentrated area then the applicant has to publish a notice to the public in a newspaper that is circulated in the area that their establishment is in, three times in three consecutive weeks.
Hill also explained that will every new application, a copy of the application is sent to the police department, City Council and city Planning Department.
If local officials have concerns about the issuance of a license they can request or impose restrictions on the business operation or they can file a protest.
Resident also have the right to protest, but must file a written protest within 30 days of either the date the Public Notice of Application is posted on the premise or the date the applicant mailed the Notice of Intention.
“If someone protests they have to prove, unless they are the police department or a city official, they have to prove how this location will directly affect them,” Hill said. “So if they live 10 miles away they have to prove to a judge how this location is going to directly affect them. So that’s why really residents that live within 100-feet have the most power when it comes to protest.”
Hill also explained that if a resident protests, they must appear at the hearing to testify or the protest is abandoned.
She also mentioned that the majority of licenses in the area were issued between 1930 and 1970, however the number of licenses has remained at approximately 180 licenses in the Pacific Beach area for the last three years.
She also said that Pacific Beach, and most likely Ocean Beach and Mission Beach as well, is unduly concentrated with alcohol licenses.
After a period of discussion with the task force and a few comments from the public, the meeting was called to an end.
Hill will be present at the December task force meeting to respond to questions from the public and the task force members, which she was unable to answer at Monday’s meeting. Representatives from the San Diego Police Department Vice Division will also speak at the next meeting, which is scheduled for Monday Dec. 18 at 6:30 p.m. at the Wave House, 3115 Ocean Front Walk.
For more information on ABC and its licensing rules, visit www.abc.ca.gov.