Planning Commission Struggles - Finding a Balance

You could see it on their faces and hear it in their voices. The majority of the members of the Planning Commission were struggling with trying to find a balance between the interests of a valued business in the community and the overall health, safety, and welfare of the residents. It’s an issue that rears its head every so often, but never have the individual members of the Commission had so much difficulty reaching a decision.

Everyone except Commissioner Fuentes. She was un-phased by the inherent conflict which all of her colleagues were trying to resolve. She put aside all the new research that had been done on this topic, including some very impressive work by Commissioners Ludden, Brower, and Chairman Hamilton. These were mere facts, and Fuentes had her mind made up weeks ago. She couldn’t understand how her colleagues could change their minds in the presence of new information, and at one point, chastised them harshly.  She even warned “you’ll get in trouble!”

The issue was recommending granting a license to sell beer and wine to 99 Cents Stores in El Toro and in Towne Center. On the one side was 99 Cents Stores, a company that now has 3 stores in Lake Forest serving hundreds of people every day. According to my own research, 99 Cents Stores is one of the top 10 most frequented grocery stores in Lake Forest. It’s also a favorite of my wife and grand-daughter.

On the other side, there’s a plethora of research which shows conclusively that as you add a store that sells alcohol, you get corresponding increases in DUI arrests, serious crime, and health problems. In my own research here in Orange County, this relationship is nearly 1:1, and research done elsewhere is pretty much in  line with our local findings (e-mail me at DrJGardner@gmail.com for a copy of my study).

Can we help a valued member of the business community if it means our people are going to suffer?

Or perhaps, better stated -

How much value is it to our business partner, and how much suffering will it cause to our people?

It’s not an easy question, and the weight sat heavily on the shoulders of the four commissioners trying to come to grips with the many ramifications of their decision.

Commissioner VanPlancke was perhaps the most conflicted, although Commissioner Ludden was not far behind. VanPlancke came down on both sides of the issue, as did Ludden, because the issue is not a simple one.

On Thursday night, the most convincing new information (IMHO) came from Commissioner Ludden who put on his detective hat and went looking at 99 Cents Stores’ record of responsibility in handling alcohol. He reported that one of their 5 OC stores had been suspended for violations involving the sale of alcohol, and received repeat violations. It was a deadly blow to a company that continually assured the Commission that they were proficient in following the law with regard to the sale of alcohol. According to the hired gun they employed to get their license, 99 Cents Stores is a “responsible corporate dispenser of alcohol”, yet he had no comment when Commissioner Ludden read the sad tale of multiple violations among the few stores in Orange County. If 99 Cents Stores is receiving violations already, with so few stores selling beer and wine, what will happen as they expand?

Ludden went on. He went to the 99 Cents Stores website and found that they listed one of the Lake Forest stores as selling beer and wine. What does that say about their effectiveness and reliability?

Then he visited the stores. At one store he found that the outside lights weren’t working. At another store he found that the retail set-up makes it easy for shoplifters, so if that store was selling beer and wine, we’d have a steady source of beer and wine for underage drinkers.

Chairman Hamilton followed with a quick review of studies he examined with respect to the relationship between the number of outlets and DUI, crime, and health problems. Invariably they reported the more availability, the greater the problems.

(In my mind it made me wonder what the staff is doing.  Why does it take a Commissioner to do the homework that staff should be doing? How is it conceivable that the staff do not check these things before bringing the issue to the Commission?)

Tomorrow we’ll continue with the discussion