Peoria Standard

The city of Peoria Liquor Commission met Aug. 1 to approve liquor licenses.

Here are the meeting's minutes, as provided by the commission:

MINUTES OF THE CITY OF PEORIA

LIQUOR COMMISSION

August 1, 2016

A meeting of the City of Peoria Liquor Commission was held in Room 404, City Hall, 419 Fulton Street,

Peoria, Illinois, on August 1, 2016, Chairman Cassidy presiding, with proper notice having been posted.

ROLL CALL:

Present: Chairman Cassidy; Commissioners: Camille Coates, Mike Miller - 3;

Absent: Mike O’Brien - 1.

Others present: Deputy Liquor Commissioner Eric Turner; Deputy Corporation Counsel Sonni Williams;

Liquor Investigator Kevin Slavens; Fire Inspector Josh Harris; Deputy Clerk Trina Bonds; and concerned

citizens and media.

I. CALL TO ORDER

Chairman Cassidy called the meeting to order at 3:30 p.m.

II. APPROVAL OF MINUTES

Commissioner Miller moved to approve the Minutes of the June 6, 2016, Liquor Commission Meeting, as

outlined; seconded by Commissioner Coates.

Approved by roll call vote:

Yeas: Cassidy, Coates, Miller - 3;

Nays: None;

Abstention: None.

III. LIQUOR SITE APPLICATIONS

Chairman Cassidy read the amendment to Section 3-57, which will be read at the beginning of every

Liquor Commission Meeting.

“The Liquor Commission is a recommending body with respect to site approval. Our function is to

determine if the location of an establishment is appropriate for the class of liquor license being

requested and then make a recommendation to the City Council as to whether the application should be

approved or denied. The City Council makes the final decision.

Under Section 3-57 of the Code of the City of Peoria any misrepresentation or false statement made to

either this Commission or the City Council relating to the proposed business to be operated on the site

can result in a denial of your liquor license; suspension and/or revocation of a license if already issued,

and a fine of up to $1,000.”

LIQUOR COMMISSION – August 1, 2016

2

16-16 Zion Coffee Inc.

d/b/a Zion Coffee Bar

803 SW Adams

Requesting: Subclass 2 (live entertainment)

Banu Hatfield, Co-Owner, Zion Coffee Bar, presented a Site Application to add a Subclass 2 (live

entertainment) to an existing Class B (restaurant, 50 % food) Liquor License, with a Subclass 3A

(sidewalk cafe) at 803 SW Adams.

In discussion with Chairman Cassidy, Mrs. Hatfield referred to their site drawing. She said they would

like local bands and/or groups to provide live entertainment for events. She stated the Peoria

Symphony Orchestra had been contacted and she said possibly three or four of their members could

provide entertainment during special events. She said they would like to do events possibly once per

month.

During more discussion, Chairman Cassidy pointed out that music could not be amplified to the outside

seating. Mrs. Hatfield explained that they had a small courtyard in the back of the building where they

wanted to add some tables.

For clarification, Deputy Corporation Counsel Sonni Williams referred to the Code and she said live

music could only be amplified inside the establishment.

Colt Sandberg, Neighborhood Business Owner, asked about the music outside of another liquor license

establishment. He said he just wanted to be clear on what was permitted.

In response to Mr. Sandberg’s comments, Deputy Corporation Counsel Sonni Williams said she did not

know the circumstances of the establishment that he was referring to. She also said she wasn’t aware

of any complaints in regards to the sound of music to the outside area of that establishment. She

clarified that, in the Code, it was prohibited to amplify sound in order to advertise and attract customers

or attention to a business. She said any business that played amplified music in a manner which

disturbed the peace and comfort would be a violation and subject to a noise complaint.

Hearing no more questions, Chairman Cassidy called for the motion.

Commissioner Coates moved to recommend approval of the Site Application to add a Subclass 2 (live

entertainment) to an existing Class B (restaurant, 50% food) Liquor License, with a Subclass 3A (sidewalk

cafe) at 803 SW Adams, contingent upon the issuance of the Certificate of Occupancy; seconded by

Commissioner Miller.

Approved by roll call vote.

Yeas: Cassidy, Coates, Miller - 3;

Nays: None.

LIQUOR COMMISSION – August 1, 2016

3

16-17 Casa de Arte, LLC

d/b/a Casa de Arte

306 Pecan

Requesting: Class A (tavern)

Subclass 1A (2:00 am closing hours)

Arturo Vargas, Co-Owner, Casa de Arte, presented a Site Application for a Class A (tavern) Liquor

License, with a Subclass 1A (2:00 a.m. closing hours) at 306 Pecan.

In discussion with Chairman Cassidy, Mr. Vargas said he and his wife would like to open a tavern/lounge

at this location. He said their hours of operation would be 5:00 p.m. to 2:00 a.m. on Fridays and

Saturdays nights only to start. He said they had other plans for some time down the road. He said

initially, frozen pizza was the only food item they would provide. Eventually, he said they wanted to add

a Mexican restaurant there.

During more discussion, Liquor Investigator Slavens commented that the Subclass 1A (2:00 am closing

hours) would fit that location. He said there were two or three other establishments in that area with

extended closing hours.

In response to a question from Commissioner Coates, Mr. Vargas said he planned to open possibly

within the next three months.

Chuck Gabbert, Neighboring Business Owner, spoke in opposition of the request. He said his main

concern was that there were discussions about adding condos nearby. He mentioned problems with

another liquor establishment in this area. He said on two different occasions, a patron had run into his

building with their car. He said this request would add more street parking issues and noise to the area.

He said this area was becoming more residential and he said approving alcohol before food usually was

not a good idea.

Colt Sandberg, Neighboring Business Owner, said he agreed with Mr. Gabbert’s comments in regards to

approving alcohol before food. He said he would like to see the business open more in the daytime. He

said there would be a need for a restaurant when there was more residential at that location. He said

he would like to see the owner get an approval if his plan was to add a Mexican restaurant later on. He

said he was also concerned with traffic issues.

In more discussion, Mr. Vargas said he felt that the residents of this area would eventually need

somewhere to hang out and listen to music. He said there really wasn’t much for the Hispanic

community to do in Peoria. He said this was all fresh and it would be his first experience with a

tavern/lounge business.

For clarification, Deputy Corporation Counsel Sonni Williams reported that the Class A (tavern)

classification would stay with the property, unless the site was revoked or there was a request to change

to a different class.

Mr. Gabbert said he would be in favor of having a taco or burrito restaurant to start. He said although

there were many ideas planned, he said there weren’t any guarantees they would happen. He said his

concern was that once this was approved as a bar, he said it would be just a bar. He said he wasn’t sure

that was the right thing for this location at this time.

LIQUOR COMMISSION – August 1, 2016

4

Hearing no more questions, Chairman Cassidy called for the motion.

Commissioner Miller moved to recommend approval of the Site Application for a Class A (tavern) Liquor

License, with a Subclass 1A (2:00 a.m. closing hours) at 306 Pecan, contingent upon the issuance of the

Certificate of Occupancy; seconded by Commissioner Coates.

After the motion, Chairman Cassidy said with all due respect, he was not in favor of putting a Class A

(tavern) liquor license designation at this location. He said the applicant’s business plans were

underdeveloped at this point. He went on to say if he decided not to go forward with some of his plans,

he said someone else would be able to do whatever they wanted as a tavern.

Approved by roll call vote.

Yeas: Coates, Miller - 2;

Nays: Cassidy - 1.

Chairman Cassidy stated this recommendation would be heard at the City Council Meeting to be held on

Tuesday, August 23, 2016, at 6:00 p.m. and a representative of this establishment should be present at

that meeting.

IV. UNFINISHED BUSINESS

More Discussion on Potential Changes to the Class M (BYOB Club) or Any Other Applicable Liquor

License in relation to Art Studios.

Deputy Corporation Counsel Sonni Williams said there was currently a trend of art galleries opening up

in different locations throughout the City. She said allowing patrons to drink alcohol while they paint

was a good business model for some of these art galleries. She said that she and Officer Slavens were

on the same page as far as having regulations and requiring some type of licensing for that type of

activity. She said they wanted to make sure that alcohol was being consumed in a proper manner. She

said operators should also be licensed and insured in order to protect the public. She said they had

discussed creating a class that met the definition of an art gallery. She reported the fee should be

around $500-$550 annually, which was in the middle of the fee for a Class M (BYOB) Liquor License and

a Class A (tavern) Liquor License.

Liquor Investigator Slavens said he had researched municipalities in surrounding communities and he

said they did not have anything on their books to address this trend. He said his concern was that there

really weren’t any checks and balances in regards to liability if something bad would happen.

During discussion among the Commission and Staff, the following points were made:

? Deputy Corporation Counsel Williams stated if there was an approved class for an art gallery,

there could also be a subclass added to allow the serving of alcohol in addition to the BYOB.

? Chairman Cassidy expressed a problem with allowing both BYOB and the serving of alcohol.

? Deputy Corporation Counsel Williams pointed out that any licensee could allow BYOB and she

said if anything went wrong, their license would be on the line.

? Deputy Liquor Commissioner Turner pointed out that there was currently an art gallery on the

Riverfront operating under the Class M (BYOB) Liquor License. He said at the time of its

approval, he mentioned if they had one, there would be requests for more.

LIQUOR COMMISSION – August 1, 2016

5

? Commissioner Coates felt it was not necessary to allow both BYOB and the retail sale of alcohol.

She said if they were a not-for-profit, they should not have the option to sell alcohol.

? Chairman Cassidy expressed that art galleries should just obtain a Class A (tavern) Liquor

License, if they were a for-profit business.

In closing, the Commission agreed that it was unnecessary to create a new class if art galleries could

operate under an existing class.

In response to Mr. Colt Sandberg’s question in regards to what distinguished being a for-profit or nonfor-profit

art gallery, Chairman Cassidy said a not-for-profit entity would be based upon who would be

recognized by the State of Illinois. Deputy Corporation Counsel Williams clarified that a Class M (BYOB)

Liquor License holder had to be a 501(c)(3) organization. She said a business qualified for a Class M as

long as they complied with the IRS requirements on making sure that any profits made did not go to

profit.

V. NEW BUSINESS

There was no new business to discuss.

VI. NEXT SCHEDULED MEETING

The next scheduled regular meeting of the Liquor Commission is Tuesday, September 6, 2016.

VII. ADJOURNMENT

Commissioner Miller moved to adjourn the meeting; seconded by Commissioner Coates.

Approved by viva voce vote.

The Liquor Commission Meeting adjourned at 4:15 p.m.

_____________________________

Deputy Clerk II

Commission Secretary