Community opposition results in the planning commission denying an alcohol permit for the Circle K gas station for the second time in four years.
Homaira Shifa / Special to the Malibu Times
Citing “oversaturation of alcohol venues in the City of Malibu,” a majority of the planning commission denied by a 3-1 vote the latest attempt by the Circle K gas station to acquire a conditional use permit to sell alcohol. Scores of residents showed up last week to protest the possibility of the gas station located at the intersection of Pacific Coast Highway and Rambla Pacifico Road selling alcohol, arguing that it was a safety issue and that there were already too many places nearby to buy alcohol.
The Sarraf family, which owns the gas station, first sought a conditional use permit for alcohol in 2007 when they were building it. But their application was denied by the planning commission after nearby residents circulated a petition opposing the permit, acquiring 300 signatures. Many of those same residents appeared again at the planning commission’s meeting Tuesday last week, this time with another 100 signatures added to the original petition list.
Residents argued the issuance of the permit would “disrupt the quietude of the neighborhood, poses a serious safety issue due to the unusual configuration of the intersection, and will add to the dangerous combination of the sale of alcohol on the highway at a gas station.”
Julie Eamer, who helped found the group A Safer PCH following the death of 13-year-old Emily Shane last year, said the intersection where the Circle K is located is the third most dangerous in Malibu, according to a report from the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department.
“I plead with you not to allow an additional opportunity for someone to be drinking and driving on this highway [Pacific Coast Highway],” La Costa resident Barry Glaser added.
Development consultant Don Schmitz, representing the Sarraf family, offered a number of mitigation measures in the hope of swaying the planning commission. Schmitz said a private security detail would patrol the property from 9 p.m. to midnight on Fridays and Saturdays to reduce vagrancy and loitering. The owners also agreed to have the conditions of approval reviewed after six months.
Schmitz then presented different maps of the city of Malibu, displaying the multiple stores that sell alcohol, including Country Liquor Store across the street from the Circle K, Duke’s Malibu Restaurant, a 76 gas station, and a Shell gas station.
“The Shell gas station’s request to sell alcohol is virtually identical to this proposal,” Schmitz. “What is the difference that you approved Shell’s proposal and not that of Circle K? Nothing at all.”
But attorney Joshua Kaplan, representing a client who lives adjacent to the Circle K, said the number of alcohol permits in Malibu was already excessive. According to the staff report for the item, there is a total of 44 ABC (Alcoholic Beverage Control) licenses held within city limits.
“The City of Malibu has five times more venues with alcohol licenses than the number allowed by state law, and three times more than the number allowed by local law,” Kaplan said. “What the applicant demonstrated during the presentation only added to the fact that there is an oversaturation of alcohol venues in a small city,” Kaplan added.
Planning Commissioners John Mazza, Lisa Toledo and Joan House voted against the permit. Jeff Jennings expressed support for the permit, with heavy restrictions, but was overruled in the 3-1 vote. The planning commission’s decision can be appealed to the Malibu City Council, but it is not known at this time whether the Sarraf family intends to do so.