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Introduction
3
Members of the Committee
4
2005 Borough Council & Mayor
5
2005 Members of the Planning, Zoning,
and Industrial Development Committee 5
Acknowledgments
6
Executive Summary
7
Purpose of Committee
10
Introduction The Liquor License Ad Hoc Study Committee was convened to address issues concerning the West Chester Borough Council process of approving the inter-county transfer of liquor licenses to locations within the Borough. In 2004, the Borough Council drafted a purpose for the Ad Hoc Committee with certain directives (see the Purpose section). As per these directives, it has been the goal of the committee to respond with recommendations to Borough Council as well as review the issues of possible effects of current and new licensees.
The objective of liquor regulation is to protect the health, welfare, peace, and morals of the community, and this should be Council's first priority as they consider any changes to current ordinances.
This report provides an Executive Summary that makes the primary recommendations to Borough Council within the scope of the Council's directives. It further provides background information and process by which these recommendations were arrived in the Findings section. Along those lines, it is important to note that the committee observed that it was not the number of liquor licenses within West Chester that were a major concern -- indeed, there may have been a time that there were more licenses than there are today. It appears that the management of the establishments and the behavior of the patrons are the issues that need to be addressed.
Discussion of points regarding the impact of behavior from patrons of liquor license holders and possible actions to address this behavior are also noted.
During the time that the ad hoc committee met, each member was asked to take on a specific item and report on that item. Those reports are found in the Findings section and authorship is noted.
Members of the Committee
At the regularly scheduled meeting of Borough Council on December 22, 2004, members of the Liquor License Ad Hoc Study Committee were selected from a request pool of volunteers. The committee is made up of two parts: active members and ex officio members. Further, as per the directive from Borough Council, the composition of the committee include members from the restaurant community, the police department, the business community within the The West Chester Business Improvement District, a neighborhood association, and West Chester University. All meetings were public and occurred at the West Chester Borough Hall. Interested community members were able to attend and review the actions of the committee as well as make remarks which were recorded in the minutes.
Active Members
Cpl. Pam Baumann -- West Chester Police Department
Chief Scott Bonn -- West Chester Police Department
Mr. Justin Fowler -- Restaurant Community
Mr. Malcolm Johnstone -- West Chester Business Improvement
District
Dr. Jim Jones -- West Chester University
Ms. Diane LeBold -- Resident
Mr. Tony Mastroianni -- Restaurant Community
Mr. Jack McFadden -- Restaurant Community
Mr. P. Timothy Phelps -- West Chester Business Improvement
District
Mr. John Schatz -- Resident
Advisors
Mr. H. Paul Fitzpatrick-- West Chester Borough Council
Mr. Ernie B. McNeely -- Borough Manager
The first meeting of the Ad Hoc Committee was convened by Paul Fitzpatrick. Malcolm Johnstone was selected as Chair of the committee and Diane LeBold was selected as Secretary.
2005 West Chester Borough Council & Mayor
Richard B. Yoder, Mayor
William J. Scott, Council President
Barbara Mcllvaine Smith, Council Vice-President
Susan L. Bayne
Steve Bond
Maria Chesterton
H. Paul Fitzpatrick
Andrew Mclntyre
Ernie B. McNeely, Borough Manager
2005 Planning, Zoning, Business & Industrial Development
Committee
H. Paul Fitzpatrick, Chair
Barbara Mcllvaine Smith
Steve Bond
Acknowledgments Besides the time that each member of the Ad Hoc Committee contributed, there is a debt of gratitude to a number of individuals who gave of there time and expertise to make this report relevant and accurate.
West Chester Borough Council members William J. Scott and H. Paul Fitzpatrick both participated with the committee: Mr. Fitzpatrick to facilitate the first meeting and Mr. Scott to provide information at a subsequent meeting.
Borough Manager Ernie McNeely provided valuable advice concerning zoning, procedures, capacity and municipal regulations that may apply to the strategies the group was considering.
Barry Goldstein, Esq. and Edward McHugh, Esq. of Goldstein, Friedberg, Goldstein & McHugh, P.C., Philadelphia, took valuable time to meet with the committee to discuss application procedures.
Jeff Lawrence, Eastern Regional Manager, Bureau of Licensing, Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board, also met with the committee to discuss procedures of the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board.
Joe Norley and Nathaniel Smith from the South Walnut Neighborhood Association regularly attended meetings and participated with questions and comments. David Magrogan from Kildare's shared activities of the West Chester Restaurant Association and common interest of the downtown restaurants.
Finally, it must be noted that this report would not be as clear or articulate without the outstanding efforts of Diane LeBold, who, as secretary, kept meticulous notes and provided useful insights into this report and its recommendations.
Executive Summary
This summary responds to the questions stipulated in the Purpose section drafted by the West Chester Borough Council. Information pertaining to the quantity or effects of activities (such as Task 1) will be found in the Findings section.
1) Enhance and codify the application process for inter-municipal liquor license transfers. Create a detailed application that includes, but is not limited to, the following information (see sample application included in the Findings section):
2) Work with enforcement officials and neighborhood groups to identify and reduce alcohol-related violations both inside liquor establishments and on the streets.
3) Create a Conditional License Agreement* (see sample agreement included in the Findings section).
* Please note that, according
to Mark Bruno, a member of the Italian Social Club, the
conditions recently agreed to by West End Entertainment for a
license at the Italian Social Club were not acceptable to the
Liquor Control Board (LCB) because, in the LCB's opinion, they
impinged on the requirement that a retail liquor licensee be
"open to the public." Council should be clear with future
applicants that it is the responsibility of the applicant to
ensure any conditional agreement with the Council meets the legal
requirements of the LCB.
4) Use zoning to gain more control over both the location
and permitted uses of both future and current liquor businesses.
5) Create an amusement permit (or similar permit) to be
issued to establishments that provide low-price drink specials,
dancing, live bands using electrified instruments, juke boxes, or
electronic gaming. Council will need to work out the details
of this with the borough solicitor, but such a permit could
provide a means to control such activities (through revocation)
and generate a fee to offset the costs of administration.
6) Consider creating a liquor license conditional-use
overlay district. Council would need to work with the
borough solicitor and zoning officer to determine standards and
boundaries for such a district.
7) Work with the Pennsylvania League of Cities and
Municipalities (PLCM) to seek changes to liquor laws. The
presence of a university creates very specific challenges in any
host community when it comes to managing alcohol issues. The
Harvard College Alcohol Study has shown clearly that binge
drinking among students increases when concentrations of bars are
within a mile of a college campus. The study indicates that this
is harmful to both students and residents who live within a mile
of a campus. (See the memorandum on the Harvard study in the
Findings section.)
8) Require that the PA Liquor Control Board TIPS training
be provided for all bartenders, servers, and managers of new
establishments.
9) Abandon All Consideration of a Moratorium on Liquor
Licenses.
Purpose
Prepared by Borough Council as a guide for the Liquor
License Ad Hoc Study Committee.
Purpose of Committee
West Chester has undergone a downtown renaissance that has
included a considerable number of new restaurant openings, retail
openings and markedly increased nightlife pedestrian traffic. A
change in the state law governing liquor licenses has allowed,
for the first time, license transfers within a county and Borough
Council over a two year period has considered six (6)
applications for transfer of licenses into West Chester. The
state law governing transfers provides little direction or
authority for Borough Council to use when considering transfer
requests. There is a perception by some that existing licensed
establishments and new transfers may be creating problems for the
community that require different strategies to address. The
purpose of this committee is to objectively evaluate information
related to the issue and make recommendations for Borough Council
consideration.
Committee Composition
Minimum of seven (7) members appointed by Borough Council and
selected from volunteers, but including representation from the
following:
Committee Tasks
Task 1 - Compile available information, gather input and
statistics to determine if the liquor license establishments are
negatively affecting the welfare, health, peace and morals of the
Borough of West Chester. Information to examine includes, but is
not limited to, number, location and type of license
establishments, police calls related to licensed establishments,
alcohol related police calls away from, but related to, licensed
establishments, effect of alcohol use on general business
district, effect on the town in general, time, day of the week
and locations of related police calls and alcohol related to
campus police.
Task 2 - To analyze the effect of liquor license transfers
into the Borough of West Chester from areas in Chester County and
make recommendations to Borough Council, including, but not
limited to, the following:
Task 3 - If negative effects have been determined in Task 1
from existing liquor license establishments, what are recommended
strategies for reducing or mitigating the effects?
Schedule
The committee should complete its tasks in a phased approach.
Tasks 1 and 2 should be completed and a written report issued to
Borough Council by June 30, 2005. Progress reports to Borough
Council should be made at least bi-monthly and, if possible,
monthly.
* Offer alcohol only as an accompaniment to a food menu.
* Not offer low-price drink specials.
* Not provide dancing, live bands using electrified
instruments, juke boxes, or electronic gaming. (May provide, at
Council's discretion, acoustic performance ensembles).
* Provide a kitchen of adequate size and capacity for full
dining service (Council will need advice to determine this).
b) Establishments found in violation of any state or
municipal regulations of any type (possibly including Building &
Housing violations) would have their amusement permit revoked for
some time period, and would, thereby, be unable to provide
dancing, live bands using electrified instruments, juke boxes, or
electronic gaming during that period.
b) Allow a municipal tax on alcohol revenues. The success of
liquor establishments is often connected to an increase in a need
for public services, such as police and public works. The liquor
establishments, not the local taxpayers, should be responsible
for funding these services.
c) Establish regulation over BYOB establishments. Even a
relatively inexpensive permit would allow some control over
BYOBs, because it would allow municipalities to revoke the permit
if an establishment is found to be violating the standards for
the permit.
b) Requiring this training for employees helps liquor
establishments decrease liability issues for insurance purposes.
c) The cost to train staff ranges from $25 to $75 per
person.
b) A moratorium will not resolve nor address the immediate
issues of patron behavior and establishment management.
- Restaurant Community
- Police
- Business Community (BID)
- Resident/Neighborhood Associations
- West Chester University
* Have new liquor license establishments approved for
transfer created any problem or negative effect?
* Can restrictions be put on the licenses to make them less
likely to create a problem or negative effect?
* Should West Chester restrict or prohibit additional
transfers?
* Can West Chester legally prohibit additional transfers if
that is desired?
* What criteria and process should Borough Council use for
considering any future license transfer requests if they are
allowed?
* What changes should be made to the state legislation that
allowed for these intra-county license transfers?
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