August 31, 2009
Attn: City Clerk (c/o John White) City Council City of Los Angeles 200 N. Spring Street Los Angeles, CA 90012
RE: Council File # 09-1812 and ZA-2008-4317 (Alcohol Permit for Tropicana Market, 5200 Monte Vista st. in Highland Park)
Dear City Council Members:
As a long-time resident and homeowner in Highland Park, I would like to go on record in opposition of the City's approval or determination of "public convenience or necessity" associated with the applicant's request for a new alcohol permit from ABC and the required Los Angeles Alcohol Conditional Use Permit.
Because this particular application (Tropicana Market) is in a census tract that already exceeds the maximum number of permits allowed by state law, I am opposed to the applicant's request for an Alcohol CUP and the City should not consider this of "public convenience or necessity."
In addition, I have been to several community meetings at Monte Vista Elementary School about the crime and violence in our community and this particular location is less than two blocks away from this important elementary school and does not comply with the requirement to be over 1,000 feet away from schools, churches, parks, etc.
I am supportive of our community's small businesses and their survival. Since this particular business has had a successful operation for many years without the sale of alcohol, I ask that you simply deny this request (and any new permit requests) for a new alcohol license in this census tract. There are other alternatives for this business, such as finding and purchasing an existing alcohol permit for this census tract, if they feel the need to expand their product offerings in this manner.
Thank you for your consideration of my input and concerns.
Sincerely,
Nicole Possert
124 Roselawn Place, Los Angeles, CA 90042 (20 year homeowner) Page I of I
John White - Tropicana Liquor Lie
From: Rosa Cortez
I am a Highland Park resident for over 40 years and I am greatly concerned about the carelessness of our representatives in maintaining our community. The last thing we need is another liquor facility to accommodate those who are constantly breaking the laws.
Rose M. Cortez
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John White - La Tropicana Market liquor license
From:
Mr. White,
My family and I wish to add our opposition to this Wednesday's City Council agenda file #09-1812 item 16, La Tropicana Market liquor license. We are opposed to the issuance of this license being that there's already too many liquor licenses in that area and it is a high crime area. There's also an Elementary School nearby (Monte Vista Elementary School). Those children have been subjected to the crime in the area during school hours causing many of them to be afraid to attend schooL It's been so bad that the school even received a writeup in the newspaper about their fears and having to learn to drop in the classroom when hearing gunshots. It is a known fact that alcohol use increases the tendency to commit criminal acts of all kinds.
We thank you for your consideration,
Linda Phelps, Roger Phelps and Kevin Phelps, 5800 Buchanan Street, Los Angeles, CA 90042
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John White - Re: 09-1812
From: gemma marquez
Re: Item 16/09-1812 La Tropicana Market 5200 Monte Vista Street hQs.:;&ii.~i~s;.:g:~":9..QQij"
Dear City Council Members,
The Historic Highland Park Neighborhood voted to oppose the request made by La Tropicana Market. As a long-time resident of Highland Park, over 45 years, I'd like to go on record in OPPOSITION to the request made by La Tropicana Market. Highland Park is a community that is at the crossroads of an upward trend with new life coming into our community. Although, no one wants to see a viable business close during these tough economic times; our Highland Park community can not afford another alcohol outlet in a census tract that has already exceeded the allotted amount and has been classified by ABC as a "High Ciime"Arefl';:"
The following are reasons to OPPOSE:
• The proposed site is in an area with a long-term level of undue concentration of alcoholic beverage outlets, • The geographic area is the target of special law enforcement activity, i.e., added police patrols, high graffiti/tagging in an area with 2 injunctions against violent gangs (Avenues and Highland Park).
• The proposed site is in close proximity to sensitive uses, M;C)!.lt.e..yi"s"tf1";E.:l~!n.:e.n.:1:iJry.§(;"ll().()"1- 2 blocks north on Monte Vista/Avenue 54, churches (Figueroa and Avenue 54 and other local congregations. • The geographic area has elevated levels of alcohol-related crimes, including but not limited to:
public intoxication, driving under the influence,
assaults, vandalism, drug violations, loitering and
increase crime specifically at the Monte Vista corridor
between Avenue 50 and Avenue 60.
In the last two years, Highland Park has been in every local newspapers and news channel, struck with tragic story after tragic story. When is one tragedy too many? For example, the recent shooting of a 13 year-old shot twice in the face at the corner of Figueroa and Meridian. Or, the mother who stabbed and decapitated her son near Burbank Middle School. And, the shooting of a bicyclist near the requested
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census tract. All of the above in just the last month or so.
Our community needs hope, education, and opportunities. Our community does not need another market becoming a liquor store!
Again, our community needs HOPE and OPPORTUNITIES; not another alcohol outlet.
I urge you to please OPPOSE the request and support HOPE in our community!
Respectfully,
Gemma Marquez
This e-mail message (including any attachments) maycontainconfidential,privileged or non-public information and is for the sale use of the designated recipient(s). Any views or opinions presented in this email are solely those of the author. This email and any files transmitted with it are confidential and intended solely for the use of the individual or entity to whom they are addressed. If you received this communication in error, please notify the sender immediately by replying to this message and then delete the original message and any attachments from your system. Use, dissemination, distribution, or reproduction of this message by unintended recipients is not authorized by the sender and may be unlawful.
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.John White - No La Tropicana Market Liquor license Please
From: "Suzanne Selby"
I am writing to voice my opposition to granting a liquor license to the La Tropicana Market on Monte Vista St. here in Highland Park. There is a school in close proximity to the market, and according to the LAPD, crime is at a higher concentration in this district. I feel the over-saturation of liquor stores in this small area may be a contributor. We don't need another vendor. A vote of No would be gratefully appreciated. Thank you for your time and consideration. Suzanne Selby, Highland Park resident, and member of North Highland Park Neighborhood Watch
Suzanne Selby storm~irds@_earthlink,net EarthLink Revolves Around You.
file:IIC:\Documents and Settings\Clerk\Local Settings\ Temp\XPgrpwise\4A9COC4 7dom 1p... 9/2/2009 From: trisha gossett
Dear Mr. White, I am asking for a No vote for a liquor license request from the La Tropicana Market here on Monte Vista Street. I am one of many concerned citizens who feel that we have too many liquor vendors in the area already. Our lead officer Mark Allen of the LAPD has let it be known that the crime in this area persists, even though crime in Highland Park has decreased over all. I feel the concentration of liquor licenses do not help in this respect. The fact that there is a school a couple of short blocks away on Monte Vista should also be considered. Please help us in our quest to restore a safe community for all the children and citizens of our wonderful community. Thanks for your support. Trisha Gossett, Highland Park, CD14 From: Bianca Marquez Dear Council Members, It's come to my attention that Item Number 16, 09-1812, La Tropicana Market is requesting an alcohol license based on the following "Public Convenience or Necessity." As a resident of Highland Park for 21 years, a senior at the University of California, Santa Cruz, I know that a heavy concentration of alcohol outlets does not benefit a community. Instead, it will further aggravate existing crime problems, and challenge the limited city resources available in Highland Park. Time after time we are told that police are understaffed and their resources are stretched to the limit. Currently, we have two gang injunctions against Highland Park and Avenues gangs. I would like to go on record in OPPOSITION to the request made for the alcohol license request. Instead, I urge our city representatives to lead the fight for quality education, community learning centers and the arts. A learning center or an art school in the Monte Vista Corridor would best serve our community's needs. No More Alcohol! Bianca Marquez From: Rana Silyan Dear Mr. White, My name is Rana Silyan Redfield. I own La Tropicana Market located at 5200 Monte Vista Street, Los Angeles, CA 90042. I have been in business for 6 years now, building my small business from a run-down corner store that before I took it sold basically only chips, sodas and candy into a full service market that offers everything from meat, produce and groceries to a full deli and juice bar. The only service that we currently lack is the ability to sell beer and wine, a service that my customers request on a daily basis, and one, which with the support of the local community I hope soon to bring. I am pleased to inform you that I recently had the pleasure of meeting Sergeant Lisa Phillips of Vice, Captain Murphy of NE Division and Councilman Ed Reyes and they are all in support of our application for a Beer and Wine License. Although the Neighborhood Council has decided by a 6 to 4 vote to oppose our efforts, final determination by ZA Larry Friedman is set for the 30th of July and we are hoping for the best. The support of Sergeant Phillips and Captain Murphy will almost certainly be conditional, the conditions to be specified in the near future, and I am of course fully accepting of any and all restrictions to be imposed upon our license. Some of the possible conditions that we already meet include restricted hours of sale (we are actually only open to 9pm anyway) and outdoor lighting (already installed and kept on all night). Additional restrictions we would happily comply with would be: 1. Location of the beer cooler towards the rear of the store. 2. Restrictions regarding advertising on the exterior of the store. 3. Restrictions on the sale of singles, 400z. containers and specific and problematic cheap wines. Additionally, I along with my husband and two of our cashiers have already completed the STAR training program, the rest of our employees to follow pending the approval of our beer and wine license. Not selling alcohol to problem clients, minors, and those already intoxicated will be of vital importance to us, We are a full- service family market with the intention of selling beer and wine responsibly to the good citizens of our community, To do otherwise would be to attract the wrong clientele, jeopardizing our core business that is and always will be grocery sales, Public drunkenness and loitering will not be tolerated, It is worth mentioning at this point that previous to owning La Tropicana Market I owned and operated a Liquor store in East LA., and although it was in a very rough neighborhood records will indicate that in that location as well as in the six years I've been in business in Highland Park there has not been one single police-involved incident I am proud of that record and believe it speaks to my abilities as an owner/operator. I care deeply about the future of our neighborhood and the future development of Monte Vista specifically. Block after block of shuttered businesses is a blight that requires brave action to reverse. Investments such as mine on this street need to be encouraged, especially in this tough economy. To be honest with you, the added revenue from the sale of beer and wine will help us ride out this tough economic crisis. After investing over a 1/4 of a million dollars into this enterprise, most of which is debt, and after this unforeseen downturn, I need your help. My employees and their families need your help as well. I take the responsibility for their well being seriously. My employees are like family to me. We will continue to address any concerns voiced by our neighbors and do whatever we can to accommodate them. We welcome their input and plan to be responsive to them. I feel it important to mention that we have a very large group of people that support La Tropicana's effort to obtain this beer and wine license, people that come to each and every hearing and speak on our behalf. Good people that ask on a regular basis why they can not pick up their beer and wine along with the rest of their groceries at my market instead of walking to several stores to finish their shopping. Most don't own a car. Many will simply not go to one of the other neighborhood liquor stores to shop because they simply feel so uncomfortable there. This is what I want to offer to my clients- a place where they can do all of their shopping in a comfortable, clean, safe and relaxed atmosphere. While this is something that most of us take for granted, in the neighborhood we serve it is something hard to come by. The local police officers that frequent my market for refreshment and to use the facilities recognize the extra steps we have taken to make it safe and clean. For example by installing at our expense three outdoor trash cans, by hosting and participating in neighborhood clean- up efforts, by immediately cleaning up graffiti (not only on our building but on neighboring buildings as well). By supporting local school charities and with the assistance of councilman Ed Reyes' office, petitioning the city for additional street lighting. On the ten blocks that comprise this stretch of Monte Vista that is largely void of viable business services we are the bright spot and the center of our community. With your support we can stay here and hopefully encourage other businesses and residents to invest here as well. I love my neighborhood. Over the years I have come to know my customers as friends. I know them by name, I know their kids and their extended families. And I am proud to say that they know my market as the center of their community, as a safe, friendly and convenient place to meet and to do their shopping. I've invested six years of my life and a lot of money into a neighborhood that no one else seems to want to invest in, and the community is a better place for it, something to which I'm certain Sergeant Phillips, Captain Murphy and Councilman Reyes will attest This is not and never will be a "liquor store". It is a full service family market, and exactly the type of establishment you want selling beer and wine in Highland Park. I thank you for your time and look forward to meeting you this coming Wednesday. Rana Silyan Redfield Owner 310-901-5580 [email protected] From: ZULEMA MONTOYA HI MY NAME IS ZULEMA MONTOYA, I LIVE NEXT DOOR AND I COMPLETLY SUPPORTING LA TROPICANA SO THEY CAN GET THE WINE LICENSE Hotmail® is up to 70% faster. Now good news travels really fast htlp:/Iwindowslive.comlonlinelhotmail?ocid=PID23391 ::T:WLMTAGL:ON:WL:en-US:WM_HYGN_faster:O 82009 From: Jorge Garcia Dear John White, I am writing you regarding the beer and wine license for La Tropicana Market I just wanted to say that I am for the sale of beer and wine in this location. I live in the area and it would be very convenient to be able to shop there for these items. Sincerely, Jorge Garcia Windows Live: Make it easier for your friends to see what you're up to on Facebook, http://windowslive.com/Campaign/SociaINelworking?ocid=PID23285::T:WLMTAGL:ON:WL:en-US:SI_SB _facebook:082009 From: julian fischer Hi, Rana gave me your email address and told me a little bit about the process that she's engaged in. I can tell you that I've lived here for five years now and that I've seen many changes come through the neighborhood, both good and bad. Rayna and the Tropicana have always been forces for the good. LA can be a grim and dreary city. There are convenience markets every five blocs, everywhere you look. The Tropicana is different: it's a little anchor of community and civil society -- a place where people don't just buy things, but also stop to catch up on gossip and gripe about problems. I've lived long enough to know that places like that don't just pop up spontaneously -- they're rare; they are the product of hard-work; and they need to be cultivated. As it happens, it really would be convenient for me to have a place just down the street where I could pick up a six pack or a bottle of wine. After an hour and a half on the freeway, a beer is sometimes just the thing you need to draw a line between your workday and your home life. But that's not the only reason I'm writing in support of this application. I mean, really, who writes to the city anymore (I'd be very curious to know if even you do!). I'm writing because I believe it's very, very important that the market continue to thrive. The neighborhood would really be poorer without it. I'd be happy to talk to you some more about this if you'd like. Sincerely, Julian Fischer 320 N Avenue 52 apt #4 Los Angeles, CA 90042 213.884.2373 Jessica Benton 5057 Montezuma Street Los Angeles, Ca., 90042 646.431.0940 Aug. 31, 2009 To whomever it may concern, I am writing this letter in support of La Tropicana Markets efforts in attaining a beer and wine license. I have he en a resident of Highland Park for five years and live three hlocks from La Tropicana Market. I have seen the ups and. downs in this neighborhood in transition and feel very strongly about supporting businesses that add positively to our community and actively do so. La 'Iropicana is absolutely one of these businesses. Rana Silyan who has owned this market for six years now has gone far and beyond normal ef- forts to make this a great community market and takes pride in doing so. The market is clean, affordable and the employees are incredibly friendly, she offers not just produce and a great meat department and a great deli with ready made foods but a healthy fruit and vegetable juice bar as well. Her Market is like a shining light on this street. The establishment is so well main- tained, there is never any graffiti on her building and she even checks the buildings surround- ing hers to report any graffiti to he cleaned up to the city. The sidewalk is always swept clean and outdoor t.rash cans are provided. At night that corner is lit up like a beacon in thc night with security lights she has spent a pretty penny on to have specially installed. I also feel confident that Rana is committed to selling beer and wine responsibly. She has al- ready enrolled in the star program and I know she wishes to comply with restrictions regarding the manner in which alcohol is sold (advertising, placement, etc.) She even has the strong sup- port for the beer and wine license from the LAPD who have evaluated her store and see the tremendous value her store has in our community Officer Lisa Phillips spoke at one of the community meetings and announced the l"APD's support in Rana's efforts, it was touching to hear her speak about how much this community needs businesses like Rana's to thrive here. Rana also engages herself in the community and truly supports the betterment of this commu- nity. She is involved in community programs to bell' provide food for the homeless, and she is also a mem- ber of the Highland Park Residents, a grassroots group of Highland Park neighbors and friends who want to see Highland Park the best it can be. In fact a few weeks ago Rana and her husband took time away from their busy schedule and went. on a live hour neighborhood trash clean up day with the Highland Park Residents group. She has also arranged through a city program to plant trees along the stretch of side- walk in front of her store. She is an amazing, inspiring individual who is truly contr-ibuting to the neighborhood in a positive way. In fact one day 1 went to the market and Rana and I took a walk a several blocks up Monte Vista street and I must tell you I was seriously amazed that practically everyone on that street, as Soon as they saw Rana got a huge smile on their face and wanted to say 'hi' and even wanted to chat a while with Hana and Rana knew everybody on first name basis from the very young to the very old and everyone in be- tween, whether is was in Spanish or English. I even made a joke that she could run for Mayer of Monte Vista Street. I was very touched by this. She has reached out and bas made this street a better, safer place where people really do feel that sense of community and connectedness. But another thing that touched me on that walk Was this. On that street on Monte Vista, wbicb I have walked and driven down for what seems like a million times, I really noticed sometbing for the first time, and that was storefront after storefront that looked to be completely ahan- doned. There was trash piling up in the door wells, and graffiti covering the facades and no se- curity lights that would provide safe transit for people walking in the evenings, and furthermore there are no businesses providing jobs .. It really made me sad to see Monte Vista as a street with boarded up buildings, when it was at one time a bustling business community with business owners providing not just goods, serv- ices and employment but also maintenance, cleanliness and safety. Having this experience really bit horne to me as to how important it is that we have La Tropi- cana Market in our community. I know that the livelihood of her market is dependent on being able to be a full service market including beer and wine, which would provide one stop shop- ping for her customers, and I have come to understand that if she is not able to be competitive in this way she will have to close her business. I think it would truly be a tragedy in many ways if this where to happen. First of all, there are so many people because it is a poorer neighborhood without trans porta . tion that are dependent on this market for their shopping (other market.' regardless of what anyone has to say are simply to far for individuals without a vehicle who are starting out from a particular destination). Second, the efforts of a responsible and caring husiness owner would be absent. Moreover, there would also he no one to clean up the graffiti and garbage and pro· vide sale lighting at night and a watchful eye during the day. And lastly, we would be left with another boarded up abandoned building no longer providing employment for members in the community I know that those who are against La Tropicana attaining this license state that the consump- tion of alcohol contributes to crime, this may be true, but when you're dealing with such a re- sponsihlc and accountable business owner such as Haria Silyan (as the LAPD has already rec- ognized) considering everything she offers the community, I believe the larger picture has been overlooked. Aft(:~rall, doesn't; grafllti contribute to crime, and don't darkly lit streets contribute to crime and doesn't joblessness and a lack of community contribute to crime? ln these economic times I feel it is so very important to support business like La Tropicana Market, businesses that really strive to do their best and in doing so make the community a bet- ter place to be. This market is a beautiful thread in the fabric that constitutes the amazing things Highland Park bas to offer and wbat Highland Park is striving to be. Highland Park needs La Tropicana Market. I also wanted to say a word about some of those who arc against the beer and wine license. The strong support against it has been led by certain memhers of the Highland Park Committee. I have attended a few of their meetings, and must say I don't understand how they arc allowed to continue functioning. r believe even the mayors office has come out publicly regarding the in- efficiency and wastefulness created on hehalf of this particular committee. During their last meeting when they were to vote for or against Rana's license, it came out against but with a very short margin r believe it was a difference of one vote. I noticed that a couple of the mem- hers decided not to vote, and I happened to know one of them from years ago. When I asked wby he didn't vote, he said he had wanted to vote in favor of the license hut explained that a certain lady in the committee would have 'killed' him ifhe did. I found this pretty sad to say the least that this committee that tries to dictate so much of what is going on in the neighborhood would behave so unethically and unprofessionally. Thank you so much for your time, I very much appreciate and efforts regarding this issue. Sincerely Jessica Benton From: Katie Barnett Dear John: I have been working with Rana Silyan Redfield and La Tropicana Market as a bookkeeper through the last two years of their business growth. I can see that Ms. Redfield is committed to a high standard of excellence-in the business that she operates and in being a beacon in the growing neighborhood of Highland Park. To grant her a beer license will be appropriate and safe. It will keep her business growing economically, and hers will be one of the safest and cleanest markets customers can shop for beer along with other groceries and supplies. Ms. Redfield is constantly striving to build a successful business while also abiding by every single law. It is difficult, especially in this economy, to grow a retail business. She does not cut corners and seeks out professionals for every aspect of her business to make sure no regulation, fee or tax is left overlooked. She wants her store to be a safe and clean environment for both her employees and her customers. She keeps her store immaculate, not just because of the Department of Health standards in place, but again, to offer a clean, bright and welcoming place for locals of the neighborhood. Ms. Redfield has been revising what her business can offer to the neighborhood, to make things more convenient for customers. Over the past year, she has added a full juice bar and take-away grill with delicious food. Not only do customers have wonderful options of fresh produce, meat and groceries, they can also count on a delicious and affordable meal within walking distance from their homes. I know that a majority of residents in Highland Park count on the fact that La Tropicana Market is conveniently located, either within walking distance or a short drive from home. The ability to sell beer would allow customers to get all of their groceries and beer in one safe location .. And, in my opinion, the ability to sell beer would help the store economically, keeping a great business open in Highland Park, jobs available and continued revenue for the City of Los Angeles. I give my full support to approving the La Tropicana Market for a beer license. There is no doubt in my mind that Ms. Redfield would carry that license with the utmost responsibility and respect Sincerely yours, Katie Barnett a From: Alice Fierro Hello Mr. White, My name is Alice Fierro and I am a resident of the Highland Park neighborhood that La Tropicana Market services. I am in full support of the market being able to sell beer. I myself would like to be able to come home from a hard day's work and be able to walk to the comer store and buy myself a nice cold beer. It's the little things like this that a lot of people take for granted. I could walk a few extra blocks, but I'd also like to spend my money, when and where I choose. I have no idea why this matter is getting so much opposition, especially from people who don't even live directly in the vicinity. I know they continue to throw crime statistics into the mix, but the reality is that the crime in this neighborhood has nothing to do with beer. It has everything to do with rival gangs fighting for control of the drug trade. This I know for a fact, I see it with my very own eyes everyday. Ms. Reyna has always been a positive force in this neighborhood. She has added an element of pride, respect and a sense of looking out for one another since she entered the community so many years ago. The prospects of her getting a beer license would only enable her to continue with that positive element for many more years to come. Please consider the comments you get from those who actually live in this area and weigh the true nature of those comments. Thank you for your time regarding this matter. Sincerely Alice Fierro 323-718-8249 With Windows Live, you can organize, edit, and share your photos. http://www.windowslive.com/Desktop/PhotoGallery Agustin Lorenzo, Realtor® Coldwell Banker David Steven Company 2122 Colorado Blvd. Los Angeles, CA 90041 To Whom It May Concern: It is with pleasure that I support the efforts of "La Tropicana" located at 5200 Monte Vista St, to obtain a Beer and Wine license. The private citizens of Highland Park have been served kindly by La Tropicana and would be delighted in obtaining the benefits of purchasing such commodities from a trusted source. The benefits of obtaining a beer and wine license for "La Tropicana" would be of minimal or no risk to the community, and would definitely allow a local community business to grow when so many have failed. In this type of fluctuating economy it is critical for small businesses to receive support from their local community and obtaining the same rights to the market as big business competitors. In doing so, they can continue to provide their goods to the community which it serves. Without a doubt, "La Tropicana" will uphold the values of the community and provide the service and goods this community needs, and the rights it chooses to exercise. Please feel free to contact me for future reference and updates on the type of service "La Tropicana" provides the local community of Highland Park. Agustin Lorenzo, Realtor® (323)481-3563 Page 1 of 1 John White - Support for La Tropicana Located at 5200 Monte Vista, L.A. CA 90042 From: "agustin lorenzo" Mr. John White, Without reservation, I can say that "La Tropicana" located at 5200 Monte Vista (Los Angeles CA 90042) is a vital community market and deserves the right to provide its customers and community members with the same service offered by outside sources and larger competitors. Enclosed is a letter drafted with the purpose of supporting "La Tropicana" in its efforts to obtain a Beer and Wine license. Please consider contacting me if you need a voice for this matter, as "La Tropicana" has proven to serve this community with a hospitality and quality unmatched by big business. Thank you for your time, Agustin Lorenzo Realtor Coldwell Banker David Steven Company (323) 481-3563 An Excellent Credit Score is 750 See Yl!ursjp-"i!s11..Easy SteJlli file:IIC:\Documents and Settings\Clerk\Local Settings\Temp\XPgrpwise\4A9DOFD3doml p... 9/2/2009 Page 1 of 1 John White - La Tropicana Market From: Robert Hanson Good afternoon, Mr. White: I'm Rob Hanson, I live in Highland Park 5 blocks from La Tropicana Market on Avenue 57 and want to voice my support for the owners in their pursuit of a beer and wine license. I sell real estate very actively in this area and as a local homeowner have a vested interest in the positive and productive development of the area. The owners of La Tropicana have worked tirelessly to improve that section of town. Aside from a couple of art galleries and a couple of restaurants, they're standing alone in the battle to improve the area. They've catered to a clientele that wasn't being served before and have bridged the gap between the new creatives that are flocking in and the longer term residents in the area that may not be as affluent. We NEED MORE people like them. Please do what you can to help them make their business profitable so they can continue to serve our community in a positive direction. I've heard the arguments by some so called community members that they will contribute to negative situations in the area. That's so not true. The gangster and naer do wells do not frequent that establishment and do not feel comfortable there amongst all the creatives and strong families. They frequent other less well managed establishments and are likely to continue to do so. If you have any questions for me, please feel free to call me at 310-989-5050 on my cell. Thanks, Rob Hanson 310-989-5050 Keller Wiliams Realty 136 N. Avenue 57 Highland Park, CA 90042 file:IIC:\Documents and Settings\Clerk\Local Settings\Temp\XPgrpwise\4A9D3E52domlp... 9/2/2009 Page 1 of I John White - Re: 09-1812 La Tropicana Market - 9/2/09 From: gemma marquez Dear Mr. White, On behalf ofHHPNC Economic Development and Land Use, please include the following attached reports in OPPOSITION to Agenda item 1609-1812 La Tropicana Market - 5200 Monte Vista, Los Angeles, CA 90042. The reports have important data and information. This matter will be heard on Wednesday, September 2,2009 at 10:00 a.m. Best regards, Gemma Marquez HHPNC Economic Development Chair This e-mail message (including any attachments) may contain confidential, privileged or non-public information and is for the sole use of the designated recipient(s). Any views or opinions presented in this email are solely those of the author. This email and any files transmitted with it are confidential and intended solely for the use of the individual or entity to whom they are addressed. If you received this communication in error, please notify the sender immediately by replying to this message and then delete the original message and any attachments from your system. Use, dissemination, distribution, or reproduction of this message by unintended recipients is not authorized by the sender and may be unlawful. file:/lC:\Documents and Settings\Clerk\Local Settings\Temp\XPgrpwise\4A9D4A19doml p.;.' 9/2/2009 CITY OF Los ANGELES mSTORIC mGHLAND PARK C/O Department ofNcighborhood Empowennent CALIFORNIA NEIGHBORHOOD COUNCIL 305 E. First Street, Los Angeles, CA 90012 Telephone: (213) 485-1360 POST OFFICE BOX 50791 Fax: (213) 485-4608 LOS ANGELES, CA 90050 TELEPHONE: (323) 256-8921 HTTP:JNNWV.HISTORICHIGHLANDPARK.ORG ISSUE DIRECTORS certified as NC#33 28-MAY -2002 Yvonne Sarceda, ARTS, Cl}l.1URE &. ARCHl1'ECl1JRE Chris Smith, CITY SERVICES &. TRANSI'OR'tATION Gemma Marquez, F"cONOMlC DEVELOPMENT Gloria Demeter, HOUSINO EXECUTIVE BOARD David Baird, LANDUSE Dr. Richard Dyke Christina Amezquita, OUTREACl:! &. COMMUNICA 11 PRESIDENT Or. Nicole Gatto, PUBLlCHl'li\.LTB &. SAFETY Dr. Stanley W. Moore Maggie Godoy, HUMAN RELA'I10NS, FIRST VICE-PRESIDENT EDUCATION &. YOU1ll DEVELOPMENT Dr. William. E. Schenewerk SECOND VICE PRESIDENT DIRECTORS AT LARGE Jessica Godoy Miriam Escobar Ofelia Zuniga Linda Phelps SECRETARY Humbcrto Escobar Vanessa Ruiz Steve Crouch Jesse Rosas Mauro Garcia Emma Bspoeose TREASURER HISTORIC HIGHLAND PARK NEIGHBORHOOD COUNCIL ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND LAND USE Public Convenience or Necessity OPPOSITION TO LA TROPOCANA MARKET 5200 MONTE VISTA ST., LOS ANGELES, CA 90042 City Case # ZA 2008-4317 (ZV) ZA 2008-4318 (MND). Council File no. 09-1812 ABC License Number: 475914 Census Tract: 1838.10 APPLICATION FOR DETERMINATION OF "PUBLIC CONVENIENCE OR NECESSITY" ALCOHOL SALES Pursuant to Section 23958 and 23858.4 California Business and Professions Code 1 Public Convenience or Necessity Legislation: In 1994, the Califomia legislature enacted AB 2897 (Caldera). Business and Professions Code § 23958.4 now prohibits the issuance of new alcohol retail licenses in any area that has an undue concentration of alcohol outlets unless a determination is made that the license would serve public convenience or necessity. The determination of "public convenience or necessity" is either made by the ABC or by a local goveming body, depending on the license type. Undue concentration was redefined in this legislation. Subsection (a) of the code defines "undue concentration" in two specific ways: Gang Injunctions & Civil Abatement in Los Angeles About Gang Injunctions: There are currently 37 active injunctions in the city involving 57 gangs. A gang injunction is a restraining order against a group. It is a civil suit that seeks a court order declaring the gang's public behavior a nuisance and asking for special rules directed toward it's activity. Injunctions can address the neighborhood's gang problem before it reaches the level of felony crime activity. Gang injunctions have a clearly demonstrable positive affect on the neighborhood area covered. Some have had a remarkable effect. In smaller areas, gang nuisance activity can be permanently removed. In larger areas, with gangs entrenched for years, the gang's hold on the area can be reduced and maintained with a small team of law enforcement officers. Anecdotal evidence is fully supportive; residents continue to ask for the period of peace a gang injunction can provide >- Highland Park (HLP) Gang Race/ethuicity: Latino Gang injunction: Yes Rough boundaries: All of Highland Park >- Avenues Gang Race/ethuicity: Latino Gang injunction: Yes Rough boundaries: All of Highland Park and parts of Cypress Park, Glassell Park and Eagle Rock, south of Colorado Boulevard, north and west of the 110 Freeway, and south and east of Eagle Rock Boulevard. Judge grants an injunction against L.A. street gang By Patrick McGreevy, Times Staff Writer February 28, 2007 Reaching a grim milestone, city prosecutors announced Tuesday that they have obtained a permanent S?~)!lj~?ti?Il~gaiIlst their 50th Los Angeles street gang, this time the 300-member ~igiij~~~m~~I~rg~~g,which allegedly uses violence to protect a major drug sales operation specializing in methamphetamine. By converting the injunction from what had been a preliminary order, a Los Angeles County Superior Court judge gave the city attorney long-term authority to put members of the gang in jail ifthey are found to be congregating, loitering, trespassing, intimidating residents, possessing weapons or possessing tools for graffiti. The injunction also establishes a 10 p.m. curfew for gang members and prohibits them from entering school safety zones, extending 1,000 feet in all directions from campuses in portions of Highland Park and Eagle Rock. said Bruce Riordan, who heads the gang prosecution program for the Los Angeles city attorney's office. City Atty. Rocky Delgadillo said the injnnction, in addition to court orders won in the last two months against the Dogtown, Clover, Eastlake and Lincoln Heights gangs, are part of a larger campaign to clamp down on gang violence and activity in a section of northeast Los Angeles where Delgadillo happens to have grown up. Delgadillo said he plans additional injunctions in the coming months as part of a crackdown to address the 14% increase in gang violence last year in L.A. The three injunctions secured since December cover about 1,000 gang members. In all, the city has 33 court injunctions against 50 gangs with about 11,000 members in an area of more than 61 square miles of claimed gang territory. No other city in the country has used injunctions as widely against gangs, cementing L.A.'s reputation as the gang capital of the United States, said T. Rodgers, head of Sidewalk University, an L.A.-based gang intervention program. The use of injunctions to limit the activity of named gang members is controversial. Groups including Rodgers' and the American Civil Liberties Union of Southern California argue that such court restrictions can be overly broad and violate the freedom of association rights of people who have not been convicted of crimes. ..It's strange that they are celebrating this landmark when there is so much we don't know about the effectiveness of gang injunctions and so many problems that have to be addressed," said Peter Bibring, an attorney for the ACLU. He said problems include a lack of due process for individuals who wish to challenge their inclusion in an injunction. The city attorney said injunctions have played a key role in the 33% decline in gang membership in the city in the last five years. Los Angeles Police Department officials estimate there are 39,000 gang members in about 720 gangs in the city. "Gang injunctions are a highly effective tool when it comes to tamping down gang crime," Delgadillo said. "But they're no silver bullet. "Suppression needs to be joined by prevention and eradication if we are to succeed in the battle against criminal street gangs." The Dogtown injunction, won in December, has already begun producing results, officials said. "What LAPD tells us is the Dogtown gang used to reign over the William Mead housing project," Delgadillo said. "Crime is down dramatically and the LAPD tells us Dogtown is no longer in the injunction area." At the same time, Delgadillo said Tuesday, six months after launching the city's First Chance intervention program, which allows gang members named in injunctions to be excluded once they enter job training and education programs, 21 gang members have signed up. * [email protected] Judge Grants Preliminary Injunction Against Avenues Gang Los Angeles January 29, 2003, Judge Susan Bryant-Deason has ruled on a proposed order, and granted a preliminary injunction against the defendant Avenues, an unincorporated association alleged to be a criminal street gang. The complaint was filed by City Attorney Rocky Delgadillo, along with Asst. City Attorney Martin Vranicar and Deputy City Attorney Lisabeth Shiner of the City Attorney's Gang Unit. A number of gang members were served in early December with a sununons notifying them of the pending injunction, perhaps prompting the quiet holiday evening. Among the gang members served were Andres Luna, Jose Luis Madrigal, Bonifacio Nunez, Victor Pina, and Marco Rodriquez. by Edward Rivera Gang Injunction Filed Against Avenues City Attorney Hopes to End Local Reign of Fear by Edward Rivera All was quiet on New Year's Eve in Cypress Park this year. No gang members congregated, firing weapons into the air. In fact, there were no Avenues gang members on the streets of Cypress Park that night after 10 p.m. at alL While local residents no doubt appreciated the quiet of the evening, the Avenues were actually under no obligation to stay in their homes that evening. The much-lauded gang injunction against the Avenues was filed December 18 in Superior Court (Central District), but is not in place yet. On January 29, 2003, Judge Susan Bryant-Deason will rule on the proposed order granting a preliminary injunction against the defendant Avenues, an unincorporated association alleged to be a criminal street gang. The complaint was filed by City Attorney Rocky Delgadillo, along with Asst. City Attorney Martin Vranicar and Deputy City Attorney Lisabeth Shiner of the City Attorneys Gang Unit. A number of gang members were served in early December with a sununons notifying them of the pending injunction, perhaps prompting the quiet holiday evening. LAPD TOP TARGETED STREET GANGS 1. 18th Street Westside (Southwest Area) 2.204th Street Harbor Area 3. 4. Black P-Stones (Southwest, Wilshire Areas) 5. Canoga Park Alabama (West Valley Area) 6.Grape Street Crips (Southeast Area) 7. La Mirada Locos (Rampart, Northeast Area) 8.Mara Salvatrucha (Rampart, Hollywood, and Wilshire Areas) 9.Rollin 30's Harlem Crip s(Southwest Area) 10. Rollin 40's (Southwest Area) 11. Rollin 60's (77th Area) i ! 1 G Ganlln:lli$~ !"'"~ !I ucha Jlirn>l } GANG INJUNCTIONS Central Bure~1.J 42nd $trm Crlp$ 16th ~ "\0 ~ AreS!! ~"'""'-l 3<1111Sft ;p.- 167 PC Murder Between 1999 and 2000, Merced GamDen::> is respor!!Siibh;:i for ncrnerous mun:!'.81;;;ofAfripsn American Ilo-yhuhave males irt Los,.Angeles. inf-ri·rm,aUori on this person'? WARNING: THIS INDIVmUAL CONSIDERED ARMED AND DANGEROUS. DO NOT ATTEMPT TO APPREHEND SUSPECT YOURSELF. IF SEEN, CONTACT YOUR LOCAL POLICE STATION ASAP. Two Teens Killed in Highland Park Los Angeles: los AngeieB police said two teenagers have died after being gunned down by suspected gang members Friday afternoon in Highland Park. 80th of the were taken to an area hospital where they died as a result of their injuries. According to detectives, a group o(men believed to be gang members confronted the teens while they were on a sideINa!k. An argument broke out and one of the gunmen putled out a handgun and fatally shot them. The,suspects then ran from the scene. The melee and the shooting appeared to be gang motivated. suspects are still at large and it is unclear how many of them were involved in the incident. Investiqatcrs have few Iaads and described the suspects only as male Hispanics with short hair. LOS ANGELES POLICE DEPARTMENT Latest Citywide Gang Crime Summary JUNE 2009 Ganl: - Related Crimes AREA· NORTHEAST AREA THIS MONTH· 32 THIS MONTH LAST YEAR· 30 YTD·237 LAST YTD • 264 % Chg . 10.2% Northeast (NOE) Newsletter From: "E-Police Newsletter" NOE Crime Update email Highland Park (June 19) If you did not see the news last week, we captured the double murder suspect from the March 13, 2009, tragic crime that occurred at Piedmont Park (Ave 61 and Figueroa Street). Our Homicide Detectives worked very hard to solve this case and Iwant to thank members of the community who came forward with leads during this investigation. in southeast Highland Park These crimes are occurring between midnight to 6 AM. We will place additional police units in this area Highland Park (May 21) On May 8th, we had a home invasion robbery committed by gang members on Ave 57. Our gang officers identified the suspects and began to watch one of the suspect's homes on Ave 51 at Monte Vista. The suspect came home and we surrounded the location. This turned into a SWAT call out as the suspect refused to give up and he claimed to be armed with firearms. We were able to convince him to give up and took him into custody without incident. The next day at around 3:45PM, a School Police officer observed the second suspect wanted for this robbery and took him into custody. As he was doing so, another gang member shot at a rival gang member directly in front of him. This caused a massive police response to the area as we attempted to locate this suspect. (The elementary school in the area was secured.) We have increased patrols in the area and are actively working the local gangs. We are also working closely with gang interventionists to solve the gang problem here. I will keep you updated on the results. Lastly, we have a burglar who has broken into several restaurants in Highland Park and Cypress Park, and pried open cash registers and juke boxes to obtain the cash currency inside. A crime alert flyer has been distributed to businesses to warn them of this criminal. We are looking for leads - if you hear anything pls call (213) 485-2568. ~ £ a c &J ~ ;; ~I'~ , ~ :! ~ ~I~.II~~ ( :~ & 1 ,e .~ ,, <,. ! ", 1 .S of ii i':l 1 ...... ,e oC'I , ...... 00 :1 o 1 o ,f , 'i t ~ 0: ~ o :::J t;'" CENSUSTRACT INFORMATIONBY CENSUSTRACT NUMBER 09-01-09 TOTAL: 14 01:39 PM where county is 19-LOS ANGELES and census tract is 1838.10 3 Census on~ale On Sale Off Sale Off Sale COUNTY Tract DO License Num Active Pend Active Pend 19 1838.10 04 31702 Y N N N 19 1838.10 04 97489 Y N N N 19 1838.10 04 151580 Y N N N 19 1838.10 04 161941 N N y N 19 1838.10 04 202182 N N y N 19 1838.10 04 214407 N N y N 19 1838.10 04 279037 Y N N N 19 1838.10 04 387977 y N N N 19 1838.10 04 400713 Y N N N 19 1838.10 04 407384 N N y N 19 1838.10 04 423045 Y N N N 19 1838.10 04 426276 N N y N 19 1838.10 04 463581 N N Y N 19 1838.10 04 475914 N N N y Totals 7 0 6 Alcoholic Beverage Control LA Metro District 3530 Wilshire Blvd'l Ste. 1110 Los Angeles, CA 90010 S~~·:::::,ion2~; ,4 rC,-V,-!'T(S) N/U)/f::; , , ,.J~DDR';5S: )F LJCEJ'-fSE: 0,' , / U" S TR.A.CT,' ).i.L8--;~L& POPiJLATIOJ{ ~2 OP LICENSES hLLOWED ')=".L__ Ifi:JJviBEROF ;::'1S! jJ'iG UC:CNS:25: __ -,Gj~O::.- _ /f4q ; D'i REPORTING DISTP1CT --4+-=~-qL- 2!32 I' Alcoholic Beverage Control LA Metro District 3530 Wilshire Blvd., 8te. 1110 .Los Angeles, CA 90010 .0 c ;! z 00 '" ~ C' w z. ~ 0::: z~ « w n, '" '"~ c 0 ~ u, z z w "::0 " 0 w « 0 0 ....I c 0 ~ 0 x 0 ::r: 0 0 < 0 00'" J: X § e c; Q 0 w ~ ::r: m z J: ~ 5 o 0 o ill ~z z w 0::: a rc~ 0 if: ur I- 0 ~ ::r: i~ I~ ~ I~ I~ ~ , 01 01 00 on 01 70\ ~< XUo . (:Q ~------12~~ CITY OF Los ANGELES mSTORIC mGHLAND PARK C/O Department of Neighborhood Empowerment CALIFORNIA NEIGHBORHOOD COUNClL 305 E. First Street, Los Angeles, CA 90012 Telephone: (213) 485·1360 POST OFFICE BOX 50791 Fax: (213) 4854608 LOS ANGELES, CA 90050 TELEPHONE: (323) 256·8921 HTTP:lNWWV,HISTORICHIGHLANDPARK.ORG ISSUE DIRECTORS certified as NC#33 28-MAY~2002 Yvonne Sarceda, ARTS. CUL 11JRE &. ARCHlTEC11)RE Chris Smith, CITY SeRVICES &. TRANSPORTATION Gemma Marquez, l'.cONOMIC DEVEJ..OPMENT Gloria Demeter, HOUSING EXECUTIVE BOARD David Baird, LAND USE Dr. Richard Dyke Christina Amezquita, OUTREACH &. COMMUNICATI PRESlDliNT Dr. Nicole Gatto, I'llBt.lCHEALn!& SAFETY Dr. StanleyW. Moore Maggie Godoy, HUMAN RELATIONS, FIRST VlCE-PRES1Dl~NT EOUCA TION & YOUTH DEVELOPMENT Dr. William E. Schcnewerk SECOND VICE PRESIDENT DIRECTORS AT LARGE Jessica Godoy Miriam Escobar Ofelia Zuniga Linda Phelps SECRETARY Humbcrto Escobar Y Messa Ruiz Steve Crouch Jesse Rosas Mauro Garcia Emma gspcuosa TREASURER HISTORIC HIGHLAND PARK NEIGHBORHOOD COUNCIL ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND LAND USE Alcohol Outlet Density Research Summaries OPPOSITION TO LA TROPOCANA MARKET 5200 MONTE VISTA ST., LOS ANGELES, CA 90042 City Case # ZA 2008-4317(ZV) ZA 2008-4318 (MND). Council File no. 09-1812 ABC License Number: 475914 Census Tract: 1838.1 0 APPLICATION FOR DETERMINATION OF "PUBLIC CONVENIENCE OR NECESSITY" ALCOHOL SALES Pursuant to Section 23958 and 23858.4 California Business and Professions Code 1 Alcohol Outlet Density Research Summaries Type of document: peer-reviewed research report The risk of assaultive violence and alcohol availability in Los Angeles County. Richard A. Scribner, David P. MacKinnon, and James H. Dwyer. American Journal of Public Health (85)3:335-340. 1995. The risk of assaultive violence and alcohol availability in Los Angeles County. Richard A. Scribner, David P. MacKinnon, and James H. Dwyer. American Journal of Public Health (85)3:335-340. 1995. Key words: violence, outlet density Summary: This study, based on data from 74 Los Angeles County cities, is the first to provide strong evidence that alcohol availability is related to violent assaults on the local level. The number of alcohol outlets (both on-site and off-site) in a city was used as a means to approximate alcohol availability. The study finds that assaults are more likely in communities that have more outlets. The authors estimate that in a typical Los Angeles city of 50,000, with 100 alcohol outlets and 570 assaults in 1990, one additional outlet would be associated with 3.4 additional assaults per year. The strong relationship between the number of outlets and assaults was found to be independent of such factors as unemployment rates, ethnic/racial makeup, income, age structure, household size, and female-headed households. Note that the study establishes a plausible association, rather than a causal relationship. The authors indicate that the study's findings have community intervention implications. Stating that community norms associated with activities in which alcohol is consumed may influence the incidence of violence, they suggest that the density of alcohol outlets may support these norms and thus contribute to the problem. Community-level interventions aimed at curtailing alcohol availability may help individuals resist these community norms. Practical implications: This study provides evidence that supports policies to limit outlet density. Translating the key finding into plain language (one more outlet would result in 3.4 more assaults per year) should be particularly useful for policy advocates. Type of document: peer-reviewed research report Violent crime and alcohol availability: relationships in an urban community. Paul W. Speer, D.M. Gorman, Erich W. Labouvie, and Mark J. Ontkush. Journal of Public Health Policy 19(3):303-318. 1998. Violent crime and alcohol availability: relationships in an urban community. Paul W. Speer, D.M. Gorman, Erich W. Labouvie, and Mark 1. Ontkush. Journal of Public Health Policy 19(3):303-318. 1998. Key words: outlet density, violence Sununary: This study found that areas of Newark, New Jersey, that had higher densities of alcohol outlets also had higher rates of violent crime. Moreover, alcohol outlet density was the single most important environmental factor explaining why violent crime rates are higher in certain areas of the city than in others. This was true for both census block groups and census tracts (the former are smaller than the latter). Decreasing alcohol outlet density by a very small percentage would result in a greater decline in violent crime than would increasing the employment rate or the median household income by much larger percentages. For crime rates to decrease by 1% in a census tract, there would have to be a: • .91% decrease in alcohol outlet density, compared to: • an 8.3% increase in the employment rate, or • a 4.5% increase in median household income For crime rates to decrease by 1% in a census block group, there would have to be a • .77% decrease in alcohol outlet density, compared to: • a 2.2% increase in the employment rate, or • a 7.7% increase in median household income The study examined violent crime (homicide, rape, aggravated assault, and robbery) rates in Newark during June-August of 1993 and 1994. Socio-demographic characteristics of census tracts and census blocks that also influence violent crime were considered, including median household income, proportion of employed adults, race/ethnicity, population density, the ratio of males aged 20-29 to males aged 40-49, and proportion of female-headed households. These data were taken from the 1990 Census. Data on alcohol outlets was drawn from the New Jersey Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control. The authors caution that the data on violent crime are taken only from the summer months, and that the geographic distribution of violent crime may vary during the other months of the year. They also state that Newark neighborhoods may have a unique ethnic and economic composition that may overstate the power of alcohol outlet density in explaining violent crime rates. The authors also point out that the mechanisms leading to violent crime rates at the city level may differ from those at the neighborhood level. Thus, a city's economic structure may explain the city-wide violent crime rate, while policing patterns may explain the higher rate at the neighborhood level. Practical implications: This study supports a growing body of literature that demonstrates that violence is associated with higher alcohol outlet density on the local level. Efforts to limit outlet density may therefore help to lower rates of violence. The study also suggests that decreasing alcohol outlet density by a small amount would be a more effective and more feasible crime-fighting measure than increasing by a more substantial percentage the employment rate or the median household income. At the same time, because the connection between high outlet density and neighborhood economic decline is well-established, replacing alcohol outlets with other sorts of business enterprises can be one step in reversing neighborhood economic decline. Document type: literature review Alcohol availability and targeted advertising in racial/ethnic minority communities. Maria Luisa Alaniz. Alcohol Health and Research World 22(4):286-289. 1998. Alcohol availability and targeted advertising in racial/ethnic minority communities. Maria Luisa Alaniz. Alcohol Health and Research World 22(4):286-289. 1998. Key words: outlet density, advertising, African Americans, Latinos Summary: This article reviews research that demonstrates that: • alcohol outlets and billboard advertising are disproportionately concentrated in low-income African American and Latino neighborhoods • neighborhoods with higher alcohol outlet density have higher rates of alcohol- related problems • alcohol outlet density is more strongly associated with alcohol-related problems than a neighborhood's racial or ethnic makeup The author also notes that community activists and local policyrnakers in several cities, such as Los Angeles, Baltimore, and Oakland, have organized to combat the proliferation of billboards and problems associated with high outlet density. Practical implications: Reducing outlet density can reduce alcohol-related problems. Linking the issues of outlet density and billboard advertising to racial and etlmic inequality can provide a powerful way of mobilizing grassroots pressure, in part because it raises the question of how to generate economic development in low-income African American and Latino communities. Note: This summary was written by the ARlV project staff. Document type: peer-reviewed research report The relationship between alcohol sales and assault in New South Wales, Australia. Richard J. Stevenson, Bronwyn Lind, and Don Weatherburn. Addiction 94(3):397-410. 1999. The relationship between alcohol sales and assault in New South Wales, Australia. Richard 1. Stevenson, Bronwyn Lind, and Don Weatherburn. Addiction 94(3):397-410. 1999. Key words: outlet density, violence Summary: This study of New South Wales (NSW), Australia found that localities with more alcohol sales had more assaults per capita. The study found that this relationship between alcohol sales and assaults held even when other factors that influence assault rates (unemployment, poverty, education, and the proportion of young males in the population) were taken into account. The authors conclude that the fmdings are consistent with a causal role for alcohol consumption in violent crime. Per capita alcohol sales were more strongly related to assault rates than was alcohol outlet density. In Sydney, the largest metropolitan area in NSW, both alcohol sales and outlet density were associated with higher assault rates. However, in the rest ofNSW ("country NSW"), which is much less densely populated, sales but not outlet density were associated with higher assault rates. The authors speculate that studies in the U.S. that examine outlet density's relationship to violent crime rates in non-urban areas may fmd that those areas with more alcohol sales have more assaults per capita, even though their outlet density may not be related to the assault rate. The type of alcohol outlet predominating (hotel, club, off-sale, restaurants) in a given area was not clearly related to the prevalence of assault. In Sydney, there was little difference between areas with a high number of anyone type of outlet and the assault rate. However, in country NSW there were more assaults in areas with more clubs and off-premises outlets. These findings do not support the hypothesis that areas with certain types of drinking establishments (mainly clubs) are likely to have more assaults because there is more opportunity for social contact than in areas that have more off-sale outlets. The authors state that the findings suggest that alcohol consumption plays a causal role in violent crime. The data from this study were taken from various government sources in the early to mid- 1990s. "Assault" was defined as violent offenses (actual bodily harm, grievous bodily harm, mailicious wounding, assaulting an officer, common assault, and shooting with intent other than murder) reported to the police in 1995. Practical implications: This study presents evidence that alcohol plays a causal role in violent crime: the more alcohol that is sold, and thus consumed, in a given area, the higher the assault rate. Prevention policies that reduce consumption-e.g., raising alcohol taxes, limiting alcohol outlet density, enforcing minimum legal drinking age laws, instituting responsible beverage service programs-may therefore also reduce violent crime. Note: This sununary was written by the ARIV project staff. Type of document: case study Drowning in alcohol: retail outlet density, economic decline, and revitalization in South L.A. A case study by Mary Lee, Esq. San Rafael, CA: Marin Institute for the Prevention of Alcohol and Other Drug Problems. 1998. 36 pages. Drowning in alcohol: retail outlet density, economic decline, and revitalization in South L.A. A case study by Mary Lee, Esq. San Rafael, CA: Marin Institute for the Prevention of Alcohol and Other Drug Problems. 1998.36 pages. Key words: African-Americans, outlet density, poverty/economic development Sununary: This publication outlines the history of South Los Angeles' economic development, chronicling its rise and decline. The author highlights the role of racism, political exclusion, and the proliferation of alcohol outlets in contributing to the area's economic downturn. Legal and informal racism segregated blacks in South Los Angeles before the 1960s, while blacks' exclusion from political power limited the city government's provision of such basic services as health care and monitoring of housing and building codes. Segregation and blacks' lack of political power enabled the city to turn a blind eye to the growth of illegal businesses such as prostitution and gambling, and the proliferation of liquor stores. At the same time, a stable black middle class emerged due to the buoyant economy, especially during the 1940s and '50s, enabling the area to support a diversity of retail stores and banks. However, small neighborhood grocery stores began to struggle when faced with competition from the new supermarkets that opened in the area in the 1950s. Moreover, local industrial plants began closing in the 1960s, increasing unemployment. Just prior to, and after, the Watts riots in 1965, supermarkets began leaving, accelerating the area's downward economic spiral. Old businesses-including banks-left and new businesses became reluctant to locate in South Los Angeles due to fear of crime and increasing insurance costs (the result of the riots and growing crime rates). Liquor stores began replacing supermarkets and banks, taking on these businesses' roles (selling groceries, cashing checks, issuing money orders, etc.). The illegal and nuisance activities surrounding many liquor stores increased, further making the area unattractive to other sorts of businesses. The author discusses the role of the Community Coalition for Substance Abuse Prevention and Treatment in fostering economic development in South Los Angeles. Central to the Community Coalition's work are efforts to mobilize area residents to compel the city government to police nuisance liquor stores and to limit the issuance of new liquor licenses. The group managed to block attempts to grant liquor licenses to all the liquor establishments destroyed in the 1992 civil unrest; today the area has 150 fewer liquor stores than it did before 1992. At the same time, the Community Coalition has begun to make the need to diversify the area's economic base a part of the city's political agenda. Three case studies of struggles around particular liquor outlets are presented to illustrate the issues facing area residents and the Community Coalition as they seek to revitalize South Los Angeles' economy. Practical implications: This publication demonstrates the connections among alcohol outlet proliferation, racism, economic development, and grassroots political action. The work suggests that community organizing around alcohol issues in impoverished and/or communities of color can be more productive when done in the context of a vision of local economic development. Note: This summary was written by the ARIV project staff. Document type: peer-reviewed research report Alcohol availability and homicide in New Orleans: conceptual considerations for small area analysis of the effect of alcohol outlet density. Richard Scribner, Deborah Cohen, Stephen Kaplan, and Susan H. Allen. Journal of Studies on Alcohol 60:310-316. 1999. Alcohol availability and homicide in New Orleans: conceptual considerations for small area analysis of the effect of alcohol outlet density. Richard Scribner, Deborah Cohen, Stephen Kaplan, and Susan H. Allen. Journal of Studies on Alcohol 60:310-316. 1999. Key words: availability, outlet density, homicides, African Americans, youths Summary: This study of urban residential neighborhoods in New Orleans, using 1994-95 data, finds that the more off-site alcohol outlets a neighborhood has, the more likely it is to have more homicides. The authors state that a typical New Orleans neighborhood with two off-site alcohol outlets has a homicide rate 24% higher than that of a neighborhood with one off-sale outlet. Put differently, a 10% higher outlet density is associated with 2.4% higher homicide rate. This relationship between higher outlet density and homicide rate holds even after taking into account other factors such as the percentage of unemployed,black, young male residents and the number of households headed by urunarried people. This study supports other research that indicates that higher outlet density is associated with alcohol-related injury, violence, and other harm (such as alcoholism). At the same time, it suggests that the relationship between outlet density and homicide (and, by extension, other alcohol-related injury and violence) is best measured over small areas such as census tracts (the functional equivalent of neighborhoods) than over larger areas such as counties. The idea is that drinking occurs as part of people's daily activities and that the places where alcohol is obtained as part of these activities are normally located in the neighborhoods where they live and work. A larger area that includes, say, urban and suburban sections provides an inaccurate picture ofthe relationship between outlet density and alcohol-related injury and violence (most likely underestimating the strength of the relationship for the urban residents and overestimating it for the suburban residents). Taking the small area as the unit to study also demonstrated that both measures of greater density (outlets per person and outlets per square mile) were associated with higher homicide rates. The study also found that neighborhoods with the same density of outlets but with higher percentages of African American residents did not have higher homicide rates. This suggests that the higher homicide rate for blacks is due to blacks residing in neighborhoods with other group level risk factors for violence (outlet density obviously being only one factor), rather than to blacks as a group being more prone to violence. Similarly, neighborhoods that had higher percentages of young males (age 15-25) actually had lower homicide rates when other factors were taken into account. This suggests that young males' higher homicide rate may be due to the fact that they are more likely to reside in high risk neighborhoods with higher rates of poverty, unemployment, family disintegration, and higher off-sale outlet density. The authors caution that the study does not provide evidence that higher alcohol outlet density causes higher homicide rates. However, they point out that the findings are consistent with that conclusion and that the findings are in line with a growing body of research that supports it. Practical implications: This study provides strong evidence of an association between off- site outlet density and homicide rates and thus can be used by policy advocates in formulating measures to reduce outlet density as one means to prevent homicides. Note: This sunnnary was written by the ARIV project staff. Document type: non-peer-reviewed research report Alcohol outlet density and Mexican American youth violence. Maria L. Alaniz and Robert Nash Parker. Prevention Research Center. 1998 Alcohol outlet density and Mexican American youth violence. Maria L. Alaniz and Robert Nash Parker. 1998 Key words: alcohol availability, alcohol outlet density, Mexican American, youth violence Sunnnary: This study found that communities in three northern Califomia cities with a higher density of alcohol outlets had significantly higher levels of crime among Mexican American youth. The percentage of professionals and of divorced families were also found to be significantly related to the prevalence of youth crime. Other factors, such as race and class did not consistently predict the incidence of youth crime. For example, the fact that a given area had a large percentage of people living in poverty did not mean that the youth crime rates were higher in that area, while higher alcohol outlet density was associated with more youth crime. The authors suggest that youth crime is more prevalent in areas with greater alcohol outlet density because the greater availability of alcohol leads youth to drink more which, in tum, increases the chances that they will become involved in violence. The authors also state that where alcohol outlets define the physical and social environment for youth, youth may be more likely to be led to engage in activities such as gang-related behavior, drug sales, and sexual behavior. The study relied on data obtained through Census Bureau data on "block groups" (areas made up of four city blocks); the California Alcohol Beverage Control agency provided information on outlet density, and local police departments provided the relevant crime information. Practical implications: As the authors point out, regardless of the exact way that alcohol outlet density helps create an environment conducive to violence, limiting outlet density may be a relatively simple way of reducing youth violence. Note: This summary was written by the ARIV project staff. Document type: non-peer-reviewed research report Immigrants and violence: the importance of neighborhood context. Maria Luisa Alaniz, Randi S. Cartmill, and Robert Nash Parker. Hispanic Journal of Behavioral Sciences 20(2): 155-174. May 1998. Immigrants and violence: the importance of neighborhood context. Maria Luisa Alaniz, Randi S. Cartrnill, and Robert Nash Parker. Hispanic Journal of Behavioral Sciences 20(2): 155-174. May 1998. Key words: availability, violence, youth, communities of color Summary: This study of three Northern California communities with large Latino immigrant populations found that there was more youth violence in neighborhoods that had more off-site alcohol outlets than those that did not. Neighborhoods with a higher percentage of divorced people also had more youth violence. There was no relationship between the number of immigrants, Latinos, or African Americans and the amount of youth violence in a neighborhood, and neighborhoods that had more professionals had lower youth violence rates. The authors argue that a higher density of off-site alcohol outlets creates an environment conducive to youth violence. These outlets act as "great attractors," that is, they provide a gathering place for youth. The atmosphere surrounding these outlets tends to encourage a loosening of normal constraints on violence, as drinking is generally seen as a "time-out" from normal routines. I n this context, the authors state that activities such as prostitution, drug sales and use, and gang-related conflicts are more likely to take place. Note that youth do not necessarily have to be drinking for the outlets to act as "great attractors" for youth violence. Moreover, because more youth near these outlets are likely to be drinking, they are more likely to engage in violent behavior due to the effects of "selective disinhibition." Selective disinhibition refers to the theory that alcohol is often associated with violence because it affects judgment and perception in ways that lower people's inhibitions against using violence to achieve their goals. Such" disinhibition" does not operate in all cases-- sometimes constraints, internalized or external, are strong enough to prevent violence from occurring, and thus disinhibition is "selective." Data on socioeconomic characteristics come from census block groups (approximately four city blocks) surveyed in the 1990 census, youth crime rates were taken from police records, and alcohol outlet density was calculated by updating California Alcoholic Beverage Control data for the three communities studied. Practical implications: As the authors point out, the findings should help advocates argue for a shift away from blaming classes of people, such as immigrants, for youth violence. Rather, the findings strongly suggest that changing the environment-sin particular, reducing the number of alcohol outlets--is a much more promising way of decreasing youth violence. Note: This sununary was written by the ARlV project staff Document type: literature review Alcohol and violence. Robert Nash Parker. Materials for Alcohol and Health 10, provided for the National Institute on Alcoholism and Alcohol Abuse. 1998.24 pages. Alcohol and violence. Robert Nash Parker. Materials for Alcohol and Health 10, provided for the National Institute on Alcoholism and Alcohol Abuse. 1998 Key words: violence, availability, outlet density Sununary: This review ofthe literature on alcohol and violence concludes that enough evidence exists to assert that alcohol is a cause of violence. Noting that most researchers caution that alcohol is associated with violence but has not yet been proven to cause it, the author states that enough scientific evidence exists to support the conclusion that alcohol causes violence. The author is careful to state that alcohol is just one, not the cause, of violence and that the causal relationship between alcohol and violence is complex. Evidence for alcohol's causal role in violence comes from: • indivdual-level studies that show that alcohol use is involved in a high percentage of violent incidents • studies of neighborhoods and other relatively small geographic areas that show that areas with more alcohol outlets experience more violent crime • studies of a single country or of different countries over time that reveal that homicide rates increase following an increase in alcohol consumption • studies showing that violence decreases following a decrease in alcohol availability Theoretical advances have helped researchers focus more precisely on the relationship between alcohol and violence. Researchers now have a better idea of how the relationship might operate, enabling them to bring more sophisticated methods to bear in studying it. The author recommends three measures for improving the knowledge base needed to refine our understanding of alcohol's role in violence: • developing better theoretical models • developing better data sources • securing greater institutional support (mainly from government) for research on alcohol and violence The author also states that evidence that alcohol is a cause of violence provides the following opportunities for enhancing policy work, and recommends: • increasing support for prevention or intervention projects, whose effectiveness in preventing violence can then be assessed • strengthening and supporting local communities' efforts to regulate alcohol outlet density • supporting efforts at the federal level to decrease consumption (e.g., raising alcohol taxes, eliminating or reducing tax benefits for alcohol advertising) Practical implications: This article provides evidence to support policy advocates' efforts to reduce violence by reducing alcohol consumption. Note: This summary was written by the ARlV project staff Document type: peer-reviewed research report Impact of banning alcohol on outpatient visits in Barrow, Alaska Arva Y. Chiu, Pedro E. Perez, and Robert Nash Parker. Journal of the American Medical Association 278(21): 1775-1777. December 1997 Impact of banning alcohol on outpatient visits in Barrow, Alaska. Arva Y. Chiu, Pedro E. Perez, and Robert Nash Parker. 1997 Key words: availability, injury, violence Summary: This study found tbat a law banning alcohol possession and importation in a small, geographically isolated town in Alaska resulted in a significant decrease in alcohol-related outpatient visits to tbe local hospitaL Between late 1993 and mid 1996 alcohol possession and importation was banned twice. The number of alcohol-related outpatient visits dropped each time tbe ban was in force, rising again when the ban was repealed. The authors found no evidence that alternative explanations could account for tbe drop in such visits. Practical implications: As the authors note, this study indicates that banning the possession and importation of alcohol in small, isolated towns can be an effective means for decreasing alcohol-related injury and violence. More importantly, tbe results strongly suggest that alcohol plays a causal role in injury and violence. This study thus provides advocates with evidence that restricting alcohol availability can lead to decreases in injury and violence. Note: This summary was written by tbe ARIV project staff. Document type:advocacylresource guide Understanding retail alcohol availability: a community action handbook. Victor Colman. Santa Clara Valley Health and Hospital Systems. Department of Alcohol and Drug Services, Prevention Division. 1997 Understanding retail alcohol availability: a community action handbook. Victor Colman. 1997 Key words: availability, prevention Summary: This handbook describes local and California state law concerning the licensing and operation of alcohol outlets, and the formal procedures that community groups must follow in trying to gain greater control over alcohol availability locally. It also discusses the strategies that community organizations can use to be successful in their efforts to place lirnitations on alcohol outlets. Although it focuses on California, residents of otber states with Alcohol Beverage Control (ABC) license systems (that is, where tbe state grants licenses, ratber than directly owning and operating outlets) can benefit from tbe handbook. The handbook is written in clear language, and provides the following helpful resources in its appendices: • research findings on alcohol, alcohol problems, and prevention strategies • a description of the govermnent structure responsible for regulating alcohol • a sample copy of a notice of application for a liquor license • a model conditional use permit ordinance • model language for communities to use in proposing regulations for alcohol outlets • a sample copy of instructions for filling out a protest form with the ABC • a sample copy of the protest form with the ABC • a listing of local, state, and national organizations that have been part of community-based alcohol availability initiatives Practical implications: This handbook will be invaluable to communities that want to gain greater local control over regulating alcohol outlets. The handbook can help guide communities through the necessary local and state procedures, as well provide suggestions regarding the broader issues of community mobilization. Note: This summary was written by the ARlV project staff. Document type: case study "Oakland shows the way": the Coalition on Alcohol Outlet Issues and media advocacy as a tool for policy change. Alison Seevak. Issue 3, December 1997. Berkeley: Berkeley Media Studies Group. 16 pages. Key words: availability, outlet density, prevention Sununary: This document outlines the role of media advocacy in the successful effort of Oakland's Coalition on Alcohol Outlet Issues (CAOI) to pass and defend a local ordinance requiring a conditional use permit (CUP) for off-sale alcohol outlets. CAOI wanted to use the CUP ordinance to restrict the number of alcohol outlets in Oakland neighborhoods and to clean up nuisance outlets. Relying on local organizing and support of a key city council member, the CAOI pressured the city council to pass the ordinance in 1993. The council used the city's local land use and policing power to pass an ordinance stating that liquor outlets established before 1977 are subject to a 1977 city law that required a CUP for such establishments. The CUP law makes liquor outlets' right to sell liquor conditional on their meeting certain standards of conduct. In addition, the 1993 law established a $600 fee per outlet, with the money to be used for increased monitoring and policing of nuisance outlets. After CAOI successfully challenged the alcohol industry's and alcohol retailers' opposition, the law went into effect in 1997 as a one-year pilot program. The author states that Oakland's efforts to increase local control over alcohol outlets is at the forefront of a statewide movement. The alcohol industry has traditionally defended itself from such efforts by using state law to pre-empt local law. The author makes it clear that communities need to organize effectively on the state level in order to protect local gains. Approximately 100 California communities have enacted local laws asserting tighter local government control over liquor outlets. Practical implications: CAOI's effort serves as a model for other communities seeking to regulate alcohol outlets. The author states that CAOl's experience offers six lessons for media advocacy: • resources make a difference (media advocacy requires personnel time) • media advocates need to be assertive, prepared, and persistent in getting their story across • stories need visuals to attract media attention • alternative media need to be cultivated (e.g., Spanish language media) • re-use the news (e.g., compiling a videotape of news coverage can be used subsequently as part of the organizing and media advocacy effort) • good organizing is essential-media advocacy is just one tool for achieving success Note: This summary was written by the ARlV project staff. Document type: peer-reviewed research report Access to alcohol: geography and prevention for local communities. Paul J. Gruenewald, Alexander B. Millar, and Peter Roeper. Alcohol Health and Research World, (20)4:244- 251,1996 Key words: availability, outlet density, motor vehicle crashes, injuries Surrnnary: This article presents evidence that links the geographic density of alcohol outlets to the incidence of presumed alcohol-related motor vehicle crashes in three California communities. The authors found a significant relationship between outlet density and the occurrence of single-vehicle night-time (SVN) crashes (which are most likely to be alcohol-related and are commonly used as a measure of alcohol-related crashes). Overall, a 10% greater restaurant density was associated with a 1.7% higher rate of SVNs. Interestingly, restaurant density was related to the higher rate of SVNs, while the density of bars or off-site outlets were not. Each of the three communities also recently initiated five preventive interventions to reduce alcohol availability, lowering outlet density being one of them. Despite differences among the communities in their strategies for achieving this goal, community groups and other interested parties in all three communities used the data from the outlet density study, as well as other scientific literature, in pursuing their efforts. This study is inspired by the few previous studies (e.g. Scribner, et al. 1994) that have found that a greater concentration of outlets is associated with more motor vehicle crashes. Enviromnenta1 factors that were taken into account in each community were features relating to traffic patterns, demographic and drinking variables (e.g., income, average age, frequence of drinking), and measures of outlet density. Practical implications: This article provides policy advocates with support for efforts to reduce injuries by limiting alcohol outlet density. At the same time, as the authors urge, researchers can aid advocates by creating "biogeographies" of alcohol problems at the local level. A biogeography of alcohol problems describes the relationship among drinkers, their drinking enviromnent, the locations of alcohol outlets, and evidence of alcohol-related problems. A biogeography can be a powerful tool for local efforts to reduce alcohol-related injuries. Note: This sununary was written by the ARIV project staff. Docmnent type: peer-reviewed research report Alcohol and homicide: a deadly combination of two American traditions. Robert Nash Parker, with Linda-Anne Rebhun. Albany, NY: State University of New York Press. 1995. Key words: violence, poverty/economic development, outlet density, minimum legal drinking age, youth Sununary: This study presents and uses case examples to test a theoretical model that links alcohol and homicide. Called "selective disinhibition," the theory holds that in some (but not all) interactions people who have been drinking feel less inhibited from using violence to achieve their ends. Alcohol's well-known negative effects on people's perception, ability to interpret others' actions and intentions, and judgment may, in certain circumstances, lead to violence. The social characteristics of the specific situation help determine whether the interaction will result in homicide. The theory differs from the older theory of disinhibition, which holds that alcohol causes violence solely because it frees individuals from feeling obliged to respect social norms against violence. The disinhibition theory cannot explain why all interactions involving alcohol do not result in violence, while the selective disinhibition theory attempts to specify the conditions under which violence and alcohol occur together. Based on this new theoretical model and on previous research that shows that per capita alcohol consumption will rise as alcohol availability expands, the authors hypothesize that an increase in alcohol availability will increase rates of violence. They test this theory in chapters 4 and 5, presenting evidence from a study of 256 American cities that indicates that a combination of poverty and alcohol availability affects the homicide rate. That is, cities with higher poverty rates (prevalence of African-American residents was used as an indicator of poverty) and more liquor outlets had higher homicide rates. The authors' findings regarding the relationship between homicide rates and alcohol outlet density hold even after taking into account other factors that might be related to homicides (e.g., population density). The authors also present data that an increase in the minimum legal drinking age-and the resulting decrease in beer consumption among youth--reduced the number of youth who were homicide victims between 1976 and 1983. Practical implications: This volume takes a significant step toward establishing a causal link between alcohol consumption and availability and violence. The selective disinhibition theory offers a model for understanding this link, and the two research studies in chapters 4 and 5 provide empirical evidence for the validity of the model. Activists can use this report (and subsequent reports by Alaniz, Parker and associates) to counter the argument that there is no research strongly suggesting a causal link between alcohol availability and violence. This can be of particular significance in lower-income communities, where there are higher concentrations of alcohol outlets and higher rates ofviolence. Note: This summary was written by the ARIV project staff. Document type: case study Confronting Sacramento: state preemption, community control, and alcohol-outlet blight in two inner-city communities. James F. Mosher and Rose M. Works. Marin Institute for the Prevention of Alcohol and Other Drug Problems. San Rafael, California. December 1994.56 pages. Key words: availability, law legislation, community groups Summary: This publication reports on the efforts oftwo low-income, inner city communities-South Central Los Angeles and the flatlands of Oakland-ito combat the overconcentration of alcohol outlets. Recognizing that this overconcentration contributes to social problems, community groups organized residents and pressured local officials to enforce existing laws regarding nuisance outlets and to pass new laws making it more difficult to establish new outlets in the community. In both cases, local efforts were hampered by California's "preemption" law, under which the state govemment is responsible for licensing and regulating the production, sale, possession, and transportation of alcohol. This centralization of control has historically favored the alcohol industry, which has found it much easier to lobby state legislators than to contend with myriad local officials on alcohol policy. However, local govermnents can use their land use powers to regulate alcohol outlets. (Note that the law is not clear as to whether these powers can be used to regulate outlets' activities directly related to alcohol. For example, whether a local govermnent can mandate a responsible beverage server training program is an unsettled legal question.) Thus, the community groups fought their battles mainly on the local level=until the alcohol industry'S maneuvers at the state level obliged the groups to take their fight to the state govermnent. Among the conclusions drawn from this detailed account ofthese communities' struggles: • state law limited local communities' attempts to control alcohol outlets • local groups have become better organized for acting on the state level • overconcentration and problem outlets are two issues around which it is possible to organize communities effectively • the overconcentration issue enables questions of economic development to be raised and thus facilitates building coalitions with other groups • local attorneys need to be engaged to help confront the legal issues arising in these types of battles • conunuuity groups must engage in aggressive media advocacy in order to help frame the issues for the public and thus counteract the alcohol industry'S access to the media The authors suggest several reforms to state law that would facilitate local control. Recognizing the difficulty in overturning the state preemption doctrine, the reconunendations are aimed at expanding local govenunents' land use and police powers, including a provision permitting local govenunents to regulate outlets' practices directly relating to alcohol sales (as noted above, state law is not clear on the permissibility of such regulation by local governments). Increased funding to beef up licensing and enforcement staff at the Alcoholic Beverage Control Department is another key reconunendation. Practical implications: The case studies give conununity activists and policy advocates an overview of the various aspects (organizational, political, legal, media, etc.) of action needed to successfully create change. The publication is especially relevant for California groups. Note: This sununary was written by the ARIV project staff. Document type: peer-reviewed research report Alcohol outlet density and motor vehicle crashes in Los Angeles County cities. Richard A. Scribner, David P. MacKinnon, and James H. Dwyer. Journal of Studies on Alcohol (44)447-453, July, 1994. Key words: availability, motor vehicle crashes Sununary: This study examines the relationship between alcohol outlet density and alcohol-related motor vehicle crashes resulting in injury and property damage in 72 cities in Los Angeles County in 1990. The study found a greater number of alcohol-related injury crashes in cities that have higher outlet densities. The authors calculate that a 1% increase in outlet density would account for a .54% increase in alcohol-related injury crashes. Thus, a city of 50,000 residents in Los Angeles County with 100 alcohol outlets would experience an additional 2.7 crashes for each new alcohol outlet opened. With the exception of bars, the density of each type of outlet (mini-markets, restaurants, and liquor stores) was significantly associated with an increase in alcohol-related injury crashes. A high concentration of African American or Latino residents was not associated with an increase in injury crashes, while a high concentration of residents who were unemployed was. The authors chose to use local level data because previous studies have shown that state- level data on alcohol outlet density are not good indicators oflocal conditions such as alcohol availability and sociodemographic make-up. Cities with over 300,000 residents (Los Angeles, Long Beach) were excluded from study because their racial/ethnic and socioeconomic diversity makes it difficult to generalize about the local effects of outlet density. Cities under 10,000 residents were excluded because they may have unrealistically high outlet densities (for example, the City ofIndustry has a small resident population but many outlets to serve the daytime work force). Practical implications: The study supports policies that aim to reduce alcohol-related injury by reducing alcohol availability on the local level. In particular, translating the key finding into plain language (one more outlet would result in 2.7 more crashes ...) provides a powerful tool for policy advocates. Note: This summary was written by the ARIV project staff. Document type: peer-reviewed research report ,( Bars, blocks, and crimes revisited: linking the theory of routine activities to the empiricism of "hot spots." Dennis W. Roncek and Pamela A. Maier. Criminology (29)4:725-753. 1991 Key words: availability, violence Sunnnary: This study examines the relationship between the number of bars located on residential blocks and the incidence of crime in Cleveland between 1979 and 1981. The authors found that blocks having more bars had higher crime rates (for murder, rape, robbery, assault, burglary, grand theft, and auto theft). The study confirms the findings of an earlier study of Cleveland. Even controlling for the effects of other factors (such as household composition, racial composition, economic status, and the environmental characteristics of the blocks), the authors found a statistically significant relationship between the number of bars and cnme. For example, adding one bar to a block would: • result in 3.38 crimes committed on that block in a year • increase the risk of a murder taking place on the block by almost 5% • increase the risk of having a violent crime of any type by 17.6% The authors caution that factors other than bar density were also found to be significantly associated with increased crime. Moreover, other studies that examine different non-residential land uses (such as high schools, fast food establishments, and shopping centers) have found similar effects on crime rates without a direct link to alcohol. Thus the authors state that the explanation for the relationship between bars and crime may have less to do with alcohol and more to do with the "routine activities" of potential victims and perpetrators and how certain characteristics ofthe setting (for example, the knowledge that patrons and proprietors will have cash on hand) make crime more likely. Practical implications: This study provides support for the argument that there is a greater risk for crime in areas that have more alcohol outlets. At the same time, the study's findings should be used carefully, given the eautions the authors present. It seems likely=though the study was not designed to address the issue--that blocks with more bars would be particularly risky settings given the effect of alcohol on drinkers' judgment and on the possibility that perpetrators perceive drinkers as easier to victimize. The risk of assaultive violence and alcohol availability in Los Angeles County. Richard A. Scribner, David P. MacKinnon, and James H. Dwyer. American Journal of Public Health (85)3:335-340. 1995. Violent crime and alcohol availability: relationships in an urban community. Paul W. Speer, D.M. Gorman, Erich W. Labouvie, and Mark J. Ontkush. Journal of Public Health Policy 19(3):303-318. 1998. Alcohol availability and targeted advertising in racial/ethnic minority communities. Maria Luisa Alaniz. Alcohol Health and Research World 22(4):286-289. 1998. The relationship between alcohol sales and assault in New South Wales, Australia. Richard 1. Stevenson, Bronwyn Lind, and Don Weatherburn. Addiction 94(3):397-410. 1999. Drowning in alcohol: retail outlet density, economic decline, and revitalization in South L.A. A case study by Mary Lee, Esq. San Rafael, CA: Marin Institute for the Prevention of Alcohol and Other Drug Problems. 1998.36 pages. Alcohol availability and homicide in New Orleans: conceptual considerations for small area analysis of the effect of alcohol outlet density. Richard Scribner, Deborah Cohen, Stephen Kaplan, and Susan H. Allen. Journal of Studies on A1coho160:31O-3l6. 1999. Alcohol outlet density and Mexican American youth violence. Maria L. Alaniz and Robert Nash Parker. 1998 Immigrants and violence: the importance of neighborhood context. Maria Luisa Alaniz, Randi S. Cartmill, and Robert Nash Parker. Hispanic Journal of Behavioral Sciences 20(2): 155-174. May 1998. Alcohol and violence. Robert Nash Parker. Materials for Alcohol and Health 10, provided for the National Institute on Alcoholism and Alcohol Abuse. 1998 Impact of banning alcohol on outpatient visits in Barrow, Alaska. Arva Y. Chiu, Pedro E. Perez, and Robert Nash Parker. 1997 Understanding retail alcohol availability: a community action handbook. Victor Colman. 1997 "Oakland shows the way": the Coalition on Alcohol Outlet Issues and media advocacy as a tool for policy change. Alison Seevak. 1997 Access to alcohol: geography and prevention for local communities. Paul J. Gruenewald, Alexander B. Millar, and Peter Roeper. 1996 Alcohol and homicide: a deadly combination of two American traditions. Robert Nash Parker, with Linda-Anne Rebhun. Albany, NY: State University of New York Press. 1995. Confronting Sacramento: state preemption, community control, and alcohol-outlet blight in two inner-city communities. James F. Mosher and Rose M. Works. 1994 Alcohol outlet density and motor vehicle crashes in Los Angeles County cities. Richard A. Scribner, David P. MacKinnon, and James H. Dwyer. 1994 Bars, blocks, and crimes revisited: linking the theory of routine activities to the empiricism of "hot spots." Dennis W. Roncek and Pamela A. Maier. 1991 Teen shot in face outside pizza parlor Calif. (KABC) -- A teenage boy is in the hospital after being shot in the face. Police are looking for the gunman who opened fire outside a Highland Park pizza parlor Saturday night. The boy is in stable condition at County USC Medical Center. He suffered two gunshot wounds to the face, though the extent of his injuries is unknown. • Video: Teen boy was shot twice in the face • More: Most Popular stories, videos and more • More: Get breaking news alerts The shooting happened at about 11:15 p.m. Saturday night. The boy was at Italiano's Pizza Parlor near N. Figueroa Street and Meridian Street. When the boy stepped outside, someone fired the shots. Police say most of the people who were at the scene fled after the shots were fired, so there are few details from witnesses so far. Bikers Confront Partlers in Highland Park- One Cyclist Shot. By Tom Topping Boulevard Sentinel and excerpts from an Anonymous Local Blogger Hundreds of cyclists known Midnight Ridazz had a near tragedy as they rode down Avenue 52 on Friday night, around midnight. As they were making their way through Highland Park, on their way to Lincoln Heights, the group was attacked as they cruised down Avenue 52 near the Pasadena Freeway. When the cyclists with blinking lights, bells, horns, and amplified music trailers went rolling by a house party on 52, the occupants there started yelling, "F_k you white boys!" (despite the diverse crowd of men and women of every skin color) As the blocks-long group of bikes continued to pass, the group of men in the yard started throwing beer bottles, pots, and anything they could find at the cyclists. Then they came at them with shovels and started knocking people off bikes. Some of the the cyclists stopped, confronted the assailants. As the incident escalated, someone from the house pulled out a .22 from his pocket and shot a cyclist in the back. The shooter then fled, and the other assailants ran back into the house and turned off the lights to hide. Highland Park's LA Fire Department #12 was on the scene within five minutes. Unfortunately, LAPD officers didn't arrive until 15 minutes later. Several suspects were arrested. The shot cyclist was extremely lucky. The small caliber bullet that missed his spine by less than an inch. The wound was not too serious, the bullet got lodged in his back muscles. From: Daniel French Hello Councilman Ed Reyes, My name is Daniel French. I am a resident of Highland Park in Councilman Ed Reyes' district I'm writing to ask you not to approve a new liquor license for Tropical Market in Highland Park on Monte Vista avenue. I have reviewed information provided by the Historic Highland Park neighborhood council and have concluded I disagree with approving another liquor license in that area. While the liquor license may represent more revenue for this business and thus some tax revenue for the city, I do not think it is worth it to the broader community. We have so much going on here: gang violence, drug sales, domestic violence, and other problems I believe may be amplified by the expansion of liquor licenses in the community. Conversely, I am interested in seeing the council office pursue collaboration with local businesses to address those concerns, in conjunction with neighborhood agencies & groups. I think that at the heart of this decision should be the possible impact on the children and youth of this community; who are the most vulnerable. With that as a focus, I believe it will be hard to make the case for approving this liquor license. Thank you in advance for reading this and taking both my request and the interests of Highland Parks children/youth in mind as you make this decision. Best, Daniel Jesus French 334 S. Avenue 57 Los Angeles, CA 90042 From: "I&a photography" Hello John, I am a writing on behalf of the La Tropicana Market on Monte Vista Sl. They are a true asset to our community, in fact having made it safer for all of us living here. I believe they are capable of be a responsible seller of alcohol in a market setting. They are a family oriented store and will make all provisions to be sure alcohol is only sold in a responsible manner. All the best, Austin Calhoon 646-696-6110 434 NAve 51 Los Angeles, CA 90042 USA From: Dear Mr. White- My name is Jennifer Train and I am writing to you in support of Rana and her efforts to obtain a liquor license for La Tropicana Market. I am a local realtor for Prudential and also live up the street from the market. I can not speak highly enough of Rana's efforts to provide wonderful service for her customers and her local community. She has consistantly proven her care for the community in so many ways, such as providing outside lighting for her store on a corner that has been notorious for crime in the past. She is consistent and quick to act regarding graffiti abatement, not only for her store, but for surrounding buildings in the neighborhood. She also has provided coffee and pastries for the local Highland Park Residents.org monthly trash clean up around the areas near the store and has gone out herself with the group and picked up trash to make our neighborhood a nicer place to live. Rana is a caring shop owner. Her store is light and bright and welcoming. She is on a first name basis with many customers. I personally love to walk with my dog in the morning down to the store to get my morning coffee and pastry. I work with a lot of 1st time homeowners and am constantly telling clients to go by the market to get a taste of Highland Park and it's friendly business owners. This area has been riddled with crime in the past, but our local LAPD field officer SGT. Lisa assures me that crime in the area is down a significant amount I feel strongly that conscientious business owners like Rana Silya and businesses run like La Tropicana Market are an enormous strength and positive addition to our community. I have been to several meetings and have heard the oppositon's fears. I however, have not been convinced by their argument that more liquor sales in the area will create more crime. There has been absolutely no evidence to make their case. Even at the last Historic Highland Park Neighb orhood Council Mtg. Sgt Lisa was emphatic with back up statistics proving crime in that area was down. I just want to emphatically proclaim that Rana Silya is the type of business owner that we need more of in Highland Park. She is a great business woman who is providing jobs and a living wage for local residents, many of whom actually walk to their jobs at the market She cares about her community and her customers. I am more that happy to endorse her to any of my real estate clients or anyone I know who has recently moved to the area. I hope that it is with an open mind and an open heart that you hear my heartfelt plee to allow Rana to remain in business by allowing her to provide a full service to her customers with the sale of beer and wine at La Tropicana Market. My Sincerest Thanks, Jennifer Train Prudential CA Realty 310-623-7825 5310 Aldama St. Los Angeles, CA 90042 Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry LAPD's public database omits nearly 400/0 of this year's crimes The map, touted as a way for residents to monitor the safety of their neighborhoods, doesn't include about 19,000 serious crimes reported in other LAPD data. Officials say they're looking into it. By Ben Welsh and Doug Smith July 09,2009 The Los Angeles Police Department's online crime map intended for public use has failed to include nearly 40% of serious crimes reported in the city, a Times analysis has found. The omissions, which date back at least six months, include thousands of crimes known to LAPD officials and are included in their official crime statistics. Among the 19,000 incidents between Jan. 1 and June 13 that do not appear at lapdcrimemaps.org: * 26 homicides * 137 rapes * 10,766 personal, vehicle or other nonviolent thefts In one of those rapes, a man hid in the back of a woman's car, forced her to drive to an abandoned North Hollywood apartment and assaulted her. It was the kind of incident that residents of the neighborhood around Sherman Way and Kester Avenue would have wanted to know about. The March 26 attack was reported on the LAPD's blog but has yet to show up on the public map. The lapses mean that the map, touted by city leaders as an important and innovative resource for city residents to determine whether their neighborhoods are safe, presents a drastically incomplete image of city crime. Some residents have tried to bring the problem to the department's attention, to no avail. Jason Insalaco, a former resident of Atwater Village who uses the pen name GlendaleBlvd, posted a message about unmapped crimes in that area on a neighborhood message board earlier this year, but his concerns were dismissed by the department. He said he was outraged by the site's inaccuracies. "The community is not being accurately informed," Insalaco said. "They are being misled and lulled into a false sense of security." The Times discovered the magnitude of the problem while developing its own online map to display LAPD data. Comparing the LAPD map with the department's official totals revealed that thousands of crimes through mid-June were missing. The department's official crime tally recorded more than 52,000 serious crimes this year. But the database on the public mapping site contained fewer than 33,000 for the same period. Among the omissions, caused by a programming error, were more than a thousand violent robberies, including two out of seven street robberies committed in April and May by men posing as police officers. The Times informed the LAPD last week of the discrepancy and specific examples of .. . missing cnmes. This week, the LAPD added about 20,000 crimes from 2009 to data it provides The Times. But as oflate Wednesday, those additions had yet to appear on the LAPD map. "The department is looking into the issue that you brought to our attention," said Lt. Rick Banks, the officer in charge ofthe online unit. "When we come up with our findings, we will respond to you." Banks declined to say whether the crimes were lost before the information was sent to the private contractors who produce the maps or whether the problems took place when the contractor processed the data. It was also unclear whether the problem dated to the origin of the project or was more recent. The missing crimes mark the second major problem with the LAPD's public maps. In April, The Times found that programming errors by the LAPD's contractor had caused thousands of crimes to be mapped in the wrong place, mistakenly portraying the Los Angeles Civic Center as the most crime-ridden location in the city. To resolve the problem, the contractor has dropped those crimes from the map, but has not yet placed them in their correct locations. When the LAPD launched the mapping site in March 2006, it was promoted as a publicly accessible version of Chief William J. Bratton's vaunted CompStat system. CompStat is a computer-powered tracking process first developed under Bratton at the New York Police Department that uses maps to track crime trends and guide deployment. The internal CompStat system is managed by LAPD staff, and CompStat's top official emphasized that the problems with the public system had not affected the department's internal statistics. "It's not something we had anything to do with," said Det. Jeff Godown, head of LAPD's CompStat unit. "It is what is. It's for the general public. For what we do [at LAPD] we have a much more robust thing." By contrast, the map available to the public at lapdcrimemaps.org is a joint venture between the Web development firm LightRay Productions and the engineering company PSOMAS, which manages it. Together, the two companies market a product known as ePolicing, which sells the mapping application first built for LAPD to other police departments. In an e-mail to The Times late Wednesday, PSOMAS Vice President Craig Gooch said his company had identified an inadvertent programming error and fixed it. However,reported crimes continued to be missing from both the LAPD map anddata sent toThe Times. The public map, which includes an e-mail notification service, was created as part of an overhaul of the LAPD's website funded with $362,000 raised by the Los Angeles Police Foundation. The scale of the errors undermine the LAPD's expressed purpose in publishing the information. LAPD officials have said that a key reason for publishing the maps is so that residents can spot crime trends. But earlier this year when the so-called Salt & Pepper Bandit robbed 13 Los Angeles banks in less than a month, only six ofthe heists found their way onto the LAPD map. In Atwater Village, Insalaco and other residents saw that about half the crimes reported by the news media had failed to appear on the LAPD's site. But when their concerns about a "massive misinformation campaign" came to the attention oflocal police officials, Northeast Division Capt. William A. Murphy dismissed them. ..The simple answer -- no," Murphy wrote in an April 22 newsletter responding to Insalaco's allegations. "There is no way that we under report crimes in [the Northeast division] by 50%." Contacted Wednesday, Murphy said he was troubled by the map's flaws. "From my perspective, any time it's even slightly off, that can cause a question on all the statistics," Murphy said. He conceded, though, that he did not check the map for accuracy even though he urged community groups to use it. "I'm a police officer, I'm relying on the technology," Murphy said. "I'm not an expert on computer systems." Those who are experts on technology say data omissions on this scale suggest a lack of attention to accuracy. It means "someone was not being particularly concerned about their data quality," said Clay Johnson, director of software development for the nonprofit Sunlight Foundation, which republishes government data online and urges the government to release more. Still, Johnson commends government agencies that make an effort to post data online. Although he called a 40% data loss a big problem, he added that some level of error is unavoidable when working with complicated databases. "I think it is acceptable as long as it's correctable," Johnson said. "You have to accept failure because it's going happen." [email protected] [email protected]