ALCOHOL POLICY AND DURHAM GRASSROOTS ACTION PLAN

This is a grassroots effort. Anyone is welcome to participate.

Jon Williams, Former Director North Carolina Alcohol Beverage Commission (NCABC) appointed by Governor Beverly Perdue There are many levels of supervision. There are 17,000 retail locations to buy alcohol across the state. Alcohol is part of the hospitality industry. Every weekend someone is shot or stabbed at a club. There are 3 main areas of focus addressed by NC ABC: Public Health, Public Safety and Fair commercial business regulations. NCABC seeks to partner with other groups working in these areas. 40% of inmates were under the influence of alcohol when they committed the crime. 50% of domestic violence cases involve alcohol. The key to successful alcohol regulation is communication and dialogue such as we are having today.

An Alcohol Roundtable was held attended by over 45 citizens including PAC facilitators, Mike Herring NC ABC Chief, Renee Cowick, NC ABC Attorney, Jeff Lasater, NC ALE, now retired Deputy Chief Steve Mihaich and other county, city and state officials. The outcome was a list of standards that citizens follow to assist the permitting process (approval or denial). Click here

Alcohol Watch Group. PAC Facilitators and concerned citizens make up this team

PAC 1: Jesse Gibson, Wanda Boone

PAC 2: Nancy Kneepkens, Peter Katz

PAC 3: Mindy Solie, Patricia Burchett

PAC 4: Harold Chestnut

PAC 5: No Representative

WHY T.R.Y. this strategy?

There are formal and informal policies. Formal policies that require a change in law and/or ordinances can take years. Informal policies are agreements that can be advocated for at the grassroots level. We left the City Council meeting in May expecting that work would begin on alcohol permitting policy changes shortly thereafter such as conversations among City Council members. We understood that Alcohol Outlets and Alcohol Outlet Density though important would necessarily have to compete for the attention of City Council members. Per Mayor Bell at the community meeting on crime last night these conversations have not begun. They are planned.

When studying alcohol outlet density in Newark, N.J, Cleveland, OH and several other cities it was found that alcohol outlet density was the single most important environmental factor explaining why violent crime rates were higher in certain areas of the city than in others. Alcohol outlet density was much more important in determining crime rates than other factors, including employment rate and median household income. The Good Neighbor Store Initiative lifts the quality of all neighborhood stores, decreasing the potential crime.

A prevention focus that addresses the environment...

Safe and healthy behaviors are impacted by the environment (the built environment) over which residents have no immediate control. Understanding health disparity means understanding that where the under served live and work make some choices difficult if not impossible. There may be limited or no access to grocery stores and communities may be unsafe or in disrepair. The situation is exacerbated by the number, type and/or placement of alcohol outlets in a given area. When there is a "healthyÃ??Ã?Â¢?Ã??Ã?Â mix of sit down restaurants, grocery stores and convenience stores there is less crime.

NEW PERMITTEE PROCESS Want to know more? click here

Indy, V. Coleman - To legally sell alcoholic beverages in North Carolina, a business must obtain the appropriate permits from the North Carolina Alcoholic Beverage Control Commission. But to do business in the city of Durham, the retailer who hopes to sell beer and other alcoholic beverages will also need a beer and wine privilege license. Here's how the process works:

The applicant submits a completed application for a retail permit with the commission.

Upon receiving a temporary permit from the ABC Commission, the applicant may legally sell alcohol. During the 90-day term of the temporary permit, officials from Alcohol Law Enforcement (ALE) in the North Carolina Department of Public Safety will conduct an investigation of the business to verify information contained in the application and that the business is operating in compliance with ABC law.

To obtain a permanent permit, the applicant is required to submit a Local Government Opinion form to the designated municipal office for consideration. (In Durham, that's the Durham Police Department.) The local government office has 15 days to process the form, which includes zoning compliance, fire code and criminal background checks of the applicant. It also has 15 days to object to the issuance of a permanent ABC permit.

Once the permit is obtained, the City of Durham requires that businesses apply for the beer and wine privilege license with the city's Business License Unit. The license applications are processed by the city's finance department and approved by the Durham City Council.

CITIZEN ALCOHOL OUTLET PERMIT ACTION CHECKLIST

1. Receive Notification of Permit from PAC Listserves - Officer Massimo

2. Check surrounding crime data using RAIDS ONLINE - PACs

3. Check compliance check data ALE or TRY

4. Check alcohol purchase survey data - TRY

5. Citizen Observations - PACs

6. Inform Durham Public Schools of the permit request - Officer Massimo

WHO TO CONTACT:

Compliance (sales to minors, etc.) ABC Investigator Ray Richardson or Keith Whitfield (919) 294-8906

Reopening under a different name: Mike Herring Mike.Herring@abc.nc.gov Provide any new information you may know like new owners name and new name of business. Concerned about a current permit holder: Contact the Durham Police Department NC ABC Legal Department: Renee Cowick renee.cowick@abc.nc.gov; Tim Morse tim.morse@abc.nc.gov; LoRita Pinnix lorita.pinnix@abc.nc.gov; or Fred Gregory fred.gregory@abc.nc.gov). They can take your information and use it to start building a file.

Renee Cowick: A site deemed no longer suitableÂ (meaning no business for 3 years at the location) must be ordered by a judge. The outcome is determined by the settlement agreement offer in front of the judge. Administrative Hearings are scheduled 3 months in advance. Witnesses are sent subpoenas through the Sheriffs department.

Above from Indy Weekly reporter V. Coleman

Why do we care? View Powerpoint Presentation here

Partners Against Crime (PAC)

The Partners Against Crime (PAC) program promotes collaboration among police officers, Durham residents, and city and county government officials to find sustainable solutions to community crime problems and quality of life issues. It is a community based volunteer organization that promotes and executes safety strategies to prevent crime at the neighborhood level. Each of Durham Police Departments five police districts has a PAC organization that holds monthly PAC meetings.

Durhams PAC groups have purchased bicycles for two of the Police Department's bicycle squads, translation equipment so Spanish-speaking residents can attend meetings, digital speed trailers to help with neighborhood speed enforcement, and motion detector lights for elderly residents. A PAC group purchased playground equipment to replace apparatus destroyed by vandalism. PAC groups have also worked to get rid of dilapidated housing in their neighborhoods.

District Partners Against Crime Sites

Partners Against Crime Meeting Schedule
District	Meetings	For more informationÃ??Ã?Â¢?Ã??Ã?Â¦
PAC 1	Third Saturdays at 9:30 a.m. Holton Career & Resource Center, 401 North Driver St.	District 1 Substation: 560-4281 PAC 1 website:
PAC 2	Second Mondays at 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. 2107 Hillandale Rd. (DPS Staff Development Center)	District 2 Substation: 560-4582 PAC 2 website:
PAC 3	Second Saturdays at 10 a.m. Community & Family Life Rec. Ctr. at Lyon Park (1309 Halley St.)	District 3 Substation: 560-4583
PAC 4	Second Saturdays at 10 a.m. Campus Hills Rec. Center (2000 South Alston Ave.)	District 4 Substation: 560-4415
PAC 5 (Central District)	Second Thursdays at 6 p.m. Blue Coffee Café (202 North Corcoran St.)	Central District Substation: 560-4935
Citywide PAC	Fourth Wednesday at 6:30 p.m. Neighborhood Improvement Services 807 E. Main St., Building 2	For information, call Harold Chestnut, chair 598-5398