Beer sparks concern in Clearfield
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No Comments [ Add Comment ]By Tanna Woods
Standard-Examiner correspondent
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strong>Council wonders if too many licenses have been granted
CLEARFIELD -- A request for a beer license raised a concern for at least one councilman because of the lax license regulations.
Councilman Michael LeBaron said there seem to be a lot of smoke shops and smaller establishments requesting licenses to sell beer. In the previous three meetings, four proposed beer license requests were all approved.
License requests were for establishments that included a gas station and a restaurant.
At Tuesday's meeting, there was just one request for a beer license, for Santa Anita Video, 532 S. State St. Though council members questioned the need for the beer license at a video store, legally they said there were no grounds to not approve it.
"As it is right now, we should approve this," LeBaron said.
Councilwoman Kathryn Murray specifically questioned why the video store needed to sell beer.
Through her daughter, who served as a translator, store owner Simona Ortega explained this would help her increase revenue, which is needed because the shop provides her sole income.
After a short discussion, the council unanimously approved the beer license.
However, LeBaron said the issue of the ease of awarded beer licenses needs to be looked at by staff.
"We could throw a rock on Main Street and find a place that sells beer," LeBaron said. "We may need to look at this."
Mayor Don Wood said there is concern about the "proliferation of license requests" recently.
Due to the council members' concerns, he said, city staff will look into the issue.
He explained staff will not only review the current city ordinance, but also look into what other cities are doing. From there, the staff could make a recommendation to change the ordinance.
Community Development Director Adam Lenhart said he understood the concern, and confirmed staff will begin looking into the issue.
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