Council Votes to Discourage New Liquor Stores

The City Council voted Tuesday to discourage the creation of any new liquor stores in Long Beach.  

Co-sponsored by four of the city’s nine council members, the agenda item received a 7-0 vote in Council Chambers March 22.

While new liquor stores are not officially banned, the item discourages the approval of any new liquor stores by city staff and urges city staff to be very strict when considering if a new liquor store is convenient or necessary.

During the meeting, council members expressed concern that the city already has plenty of liquor stores and that the abundance of unregulated liquor stores can increase crime.

According to Concilmember Steven Neal, the term liquor store in this instance refers to "offsale hard liquor outlets primarily in residential areas" and does not include drugstores, grocery stores, wholesale outlets, or small convenience stores that offer a variety of products and alcohol. 

"This policy will make it more difficult for new liquor license (for liquor stores) to come into the community," Neal said. 

“At the community level, these stores can act as magnets for crime and violence, and expose residents to all manner of potential harm if not properly regulated,” according to memo from Neal’s office.

The city of Long Beach has one alcohol license per every 400 residents over the age of 18, according to a staff report.

The item was co-sponsored by Councilmembers Steven Neal, Robert Garcia, Dee Andrews and Suja Lowenthal.  

"I think that we need to look at all the liquor stores in the city and close some of them down," said Darlene Broom, a resident of the ninth destrict, during public comments. 

No residents spoke during public comments against the item, but a number of them spoke on another liquor store related issue:

The city council also voted 7-0 in favor of creating new requirements for the city's retail alcohol outlets.

Some of the new standards  include requiring liquor stores to have clean interiors and to not allow public consumption of alcoholic beverages or any other illegal activities on site.

Councilmember Steven Neal said that the rules would help "combat problem liquor stores in the community."

Click here to download a copy of the new requirements.

City Attorney Robert Shannon said that if a liquor store does not follow the new standards, the city has a number of response options, including revoking a business license, filing a civil action or an administrative citation of $100, then $200, then $500 and $500 each additional day the business is in violation of the new standards.

Frank Fernandez, manager of the Long Beach-based Cork-N-Bottle liquor store for five years, said that any good store owner will keep dirt and crime away from his store, and that these new conditions add to an already high number of restrictions on liquor store owners.

“All this means to me is that it’s more taxation on us,” Fernandez said.

Broom, who also spoke on the item, said that she has no problem with liquor store owners that keep their businesses safe and clean.

However, it is the poorly run stores that cause problems, said Broom.

Tom Berberat, who sells alcohol to different businesses in the city, said he felt that the new restrictions should apply to all businesses, not just liquor stores.  

 “I do feel that in the last 17 years of business that liquor stores are being (unfairly) targeted,” Berberat said during public comments.  

Other Business

Healthy food: Officials asked city staff to develop a program within 60 days to encourage local corner stores and liquor stores to provide healthy food options.

Neal said that the program is a way to combat the lack of healthy food options and “the overconcentration and availability” of fast food in the city.

A number of residents spoke out on the issue including Maria Soto.

“It’s important for our children to start, as soon as they can, eating good food,” said Soto, who has a one-year-old child.

Street sweeping: The Council postponed a decision to ask city staff to research the possible savings of contracting out the city’s street sweeping services.

About 13 employees of the city’s street sweeping department attended the meeting.

Councilmembers apologized to the employees and told staff to put the street sweeping item on the agenda immediately after the consent calendar at the next council meeting.

In remembrance: The city closed the meeting in honor of a number of prominent locals who recently died, including  at Long Beach Airport and the , who died March 15.

Council members Patrick O’Connell and Robert Garcia were absent.

The next City Council meeting takes place April 5 in Council Chambers at City Hall at 333 W. Ocean Blvd.