CITY OF ELK GROVE CITY COUNCIL STAFF REPORT

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1 AGENDA ITEM NO. 9.2 CITY OF ELK GROVE CITY COUNCIL STAFF REPORT AGENDA TITLE: A public hearing to consider adopting a Resolution of the City Council of the City of Elk Grove, approving a Letter of Public Convenience and Necessity for Type 21 and Type 42 alcohol licenses for Henry s Farmers Market, located at 8211 Laguna Boulevard MEETING DATE: July 14, 2010 PREPARED BY: DEPARTMENT HEAD: Adam Petersen, Associate Planner Taro Echiburú, Interim Planning Director PROJECT INFORMATION Location: Planner: Applicant: Property Owner: 8211 Laguna Boulevard Adam Petersen, Associate Planner Courtney and Le Architects John P. Le 801 S. Myrtle Avenue Monrovia, CA Laguna Gateway Phase 2, L.P. John Pappas Pappas Investments 2020 L St., 5 th Floor Sacramento, CA RECOMMENDED ACTION: Staff recommends the City Council of the City of Elk Grove review the information in this report and consider adopting a resolution approving a Letter of Public Convenience and Necessity (PCN Letter) for a Type 21 and 1

Should the City Council choose to approve the PCN Letter for one type of license and not the other, they may simply remove the relevant

2 Elk Grove City Council July 14, 2010 Page 2 of 5 Type 42 alcohol license for the Henry s Farmers Market grocery store located at 8211 Laguna Boulevard. Should the City Council choose to approve the PCN Letter for one type of license and not the other, they may simply remove the relevant whereas statement from the resolution. Figure 1: Project Location and Information Henry s Farmers Market BACKGROUND INFORMATION Henry s Farmers Market grocery store is located at the northwest corner of Laguna Boulevard and Big Horn Boulevard. The Applicant is requesting a 2

3 Elk Grove City Council July 14, 2010 Page 3 of 5 PCN Letter to allow Henry s Farmers Market to acquire a Type 21 (Off-Sale General) alcohol license and Type 42 (On-Sale Beer and Wine for Public Premises) alcohol license from the Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC). The Type 21 license allows for the sale and off-site consumption of beer, wine and liquor. The Type 42 license allows for Henry s Farmers Market to conduct wine tasting on-site as part of the store operations. ABC requires an applicant to obtain a PCN Letter from the affected jurisdiction when the establishment is located within a high crime Police Beat or when the census tract is deemed overconcentrated by ABC s standards. Henry s Farmers Market is located both in a census tract which is overconcentrated and in a high crime Police Beat as defined by ABC. PCN LETTER JUSTIFICATION As part of the request for a PCN Letter, an applicant must explain how the alcohol license will serve the public s convenience and necessity. In response, the applicant notes that alcoholic beverage products would provide a complete range of products typically found in a grocery store. The applicant also notes that the sale of alcoholic beverages would meet customer s demand and would allow shoppers to buy a range of products at one location rather than having to travel, park, and pay at different stores (Attachment 2). ANALYSIS Chapter 4.54 of the Elk Grove Municipal Code establishes a protocol for the issuance and review of Letters of Public Convenience and Necessity. A variety of City departments and other agencies (including the Elk Grove Police Department and the Elk Grove Community Enhancement division) are required to review PCN Letter applications in order to determine current and past problems at the Applicant s proposed store location. Issues examined by these departments and agencies include: Criminal activity, Building code violations, and Complaints to the City and/or ABC. 3

4 Elk Grove City Council July 14, 2010 Page 4 of 5 None of the reporting agencies noted any issues with the Henry s Farmers Market location. The location of the store for which the Letter of Public Convenience is requested is zoned SPA-LG (Special Planning Area Laguna Gateway). The SPA applies the standards of the Shopping Center (SC) zone to this property. This zoning district allows alcohol sales and on-site consumption of alcohol as a permitted use, which means that in this instance the City Council cannot impose conditions on the sale of alcohol other than the basic requirements of state law (which would be enforced by the State of California) and of the Elk Grove Zoning Code (sign area, lighting, and other standards common to all retail stores). The project is located in census tract 96.13, which ABC considers to have high crime and to be overconcentrated. ABC makes the overconcentrated determination when the number of liquor licenses issued exceeds the number of licenses which should be permitted in a census tract per ABC s standards. There is one license allowed in this census tract, and five exist. ABC determines an area to be high crime when the number of crimes committed in a census tract exceeds 120% of the average number of crimes committed citywide. The City of Elk Grove Police Department has reviewed the project and noted that the project is in Beat 2. Total crimes in Beat 2 are 1,455, while 120% of the average number of crimes in the City is 939. Therefore, Beat 2 exceeds the 120% of average by 516 crimes. The Police Department notes that the only crime at this location were five larcenies in The crime statistics for Beat 2 are provided in Attachment 3. ENVIRONMENTAL ANALYSIS Section 15061(b)(3) of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) states that an activity is covered by the general rule that CEQA only applies to projects which have the potential for causing a significant effect on the environment. Where it can be seen with certainty that there is no possibility that the activity in question may have a significant effect on the environment, the activity is not subject to CEQA review. Granting this Letter of Public Convenience and Necessity will not bring about any physical 4

5 Elk Grove City Council July 14, 2010 Page 5 of 5 change to the environment and will not have any potential for causing a significant effect on the environment. FISCAL IMPACT No identifiable direct material or negative financial impact to the City s General Fund is expected. ATTACHMENTS 1. Resolution 2. Applicant s Justification Letters 3. Police Crime Statistics 5

6 ATTACHMENT 1 A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF ELK GROVE APPROVING A LETTER OF PUBLIC CONVENIENCE AND NECESSITY FOR A TYPE 21 (OFF-SALE GENERAL) ALCOHOL LICENSE AND A TYPE 42 (ON-SALE BEER AND WINE FOR PUBLIC PREMISES) ALCOHOL LICENSE FOR HENRY S FARMERS MARKET LOCATED AT 8211 LAGUNA BOULEVARD, PROJECT NO. EG AND EG ASSESSOR PARCEL NUMBER WHEREAS, the Planning Division of the City of Elk Grove received an application on May 26, 2010, requesting a Letter of Public Convenience and Necessity for Henry s Farmers Market to obtain a Type 21 (Off-Sale General) alcohol license from the Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control in order to sell beer, wine, and liquor from an existing store location; and WHEREAS, the Planning Division of the City of Elk Grove received an application on June 18, 2010, requesting a Letter of Public Convenience and Necessity for Henry s Farmers Market to obtain a Type 42 (On-Sale Beer and Wine for Public Premises) alcohol license from the Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control in order to conduct wine tasting from an existing store location; and WHEREAS, the proposed project is located on real property in the incorporated portions of the City of Elk Grove more particularly described as Assessor Parcel Number ; and WHEREAS, Chapter 4.54, Article 5 of the Elk Grove Municipal Code establishes the City Council as the appropriate authority to hear and decide on all Letter of Public Convenience and Necessity requests; and WHEREAS, the project is exempt from California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) review under 15061(b)(3) of the CEQA Guidelines because a Letter of Public Convenience will not with reasonable certainty have a possible effect on the environment; and WHEREAS, the City Council held a duly noticed public hearing as required by law to consider all of the information presented by staff, information presented by the project proponent, and public testimony presented in writing and at the meeting. NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the City Council of the City of Elk Grove hereby approves the Letter of Public Convenience and Necessity for Henry s Farmers Market located at 8211 Laguna Boulevard based on the following findings: California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) Finding: The project is exempt from CEQA review. 6 Evidence: Pursuant to 15061(b)(3) of the CEQA Guidelines, an activity is covered by the general rule that CEQA only applies to projects that have the potential for causing a significant effect on the environment. Where it can be seen with certainty that there is no possibility that the activity in question may have a significant effect on the

7 environment, the activity is not subject to CEQA review. Granting this Letter of Public Convenience and Necessity will not bring about any physical change to the environment and therefore will not have any potential for causing a significant effect on the environment. Public Convenience and Necessity Finding: Public Convenience and Necessity is met by the issuance of a Type 21 (Off- Sale General) alcohol license for Henry s Farmers Market. Evidence: According to the Elk Grove Police Department, the Community Enhancement Department, the Building Department, and the Sacramento County Environmental Health and Safety Department, no existing violations against the property or Applicant have occurred that would discourage the issuance of a Type 21 alcohol license for Henry s Farmers Market. Furthermore, the public convenience would be served by allowing customers to purchase wine and beer from the store to be consumed off-site. This convenience would eliminate the need to travel from store to store in search of alcoholic beverages. Henry s Farmers Market can therefore function as a one-stop-shop business. Finding: Public Convenience and Necessity is met by the issuance of a Type 42 (On- Sale Beer and Wine for Public Premises) alcohol license for Henry s Farmers Market. Evidence: According to the Elk Grove Police Department, the Community Enhancement Department, the Building Department, and the Sacramento County Environmental Health and Safety Department, no existing violations against the property or Applicant have occurred that would discourage the issuance of a Type 42 alcohol license for Henry s Farmers Market. Furthermore, the public convenience would be served by allowing customers to sample wine and beer at the store, providing consumers with the opportunity to make informed purchases. The public s convenience is further enhanced by providing additional merchandise and an interactive method of selecting it. PASSED AND ADOPTED by the City Council of the City of Elk Grove this 14 th day of July SOPHIA SCHERMAN, MAYOR of the CITY OF ELK GROVE ATTEST: APPROVED AS TO FORM: JASON LINDGREN, INTERIM CITY CLERK SUSAN COCHRAN, CITY ATTORNEY 7

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ELK GROVE POLICE DEPARTMENT CRIME SUMMARY BY BEAT & ARREST TOTAL FOR 2009 Beat 1 Beat 2 Beat 3 Beat 4 Beat 5 Total City-wide Criminal Homicide 1 1 1

906 449 246 380 2150 Motor Vehicle Theft 32 126 110 65 100 433 Total 315 1455 858 551 734 3913 2009 Arrests Average per reporting district 783 120%

15 ELK GROVE POLICE DEPARTMENT CRIME SUMMARY BY BEAT & ARREST TOTAL FOR 2009 Beat 1 Beat 2 Beat 3 Beat 4 Beat 5 Total City-wide Criminal Homicide Forcible Rape Robbery Aggravated Assault Burglary Larceny-theft Motor Vehicle Theft Total Arrests Average per reporting district % of average 939 All information is from our records management system. Information is subject to change as incidents are investigated/reclassified

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Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council. Submitted by: Wendy Cosin, Interim Director, Planning and Development

Office of the City Manager ACTION CALENDAR December 6, 2011 To: From: Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council Christine Daniel, Interim City Manager Submitted by: Wendy Cosin, Interim Director,