Council rejects waiver for liquor store, OKs circus ban
City Council unanimously against business on Zafarano Drive that is within 300 feet of a church
City councilors unanimously rejected a waiver for a fine-wine superstore that wants to open its doors in a south-side commercial complex — even amid questions over whether the applicant needed the waiver to open the proposed Total Wine & More near a Cerrillos Road church.
Some councilors, after voting against the measure, acknowledged they could face a lawsuit over their decision.
The City Attorney’s Office had recommended that councilors consider the waiver, citing a state statute prohibiting a liquor store within a 300-foot radius of a church. The site of the proposed store, 3529 Zafarano Drive, formerly occupied by a Staples, is near the Praise Tabernacle Freedom Church.
But a representative of the applicant, Arizona Fine Wine and Spirits, argued that the portion of the church’s property that fell within that radius is a weedy lot that is “unused by the church.” And the state Alcohol and Gaming Board, in granting preliminary approval of the transfer of a liquor license for the Total Wine store, did not require a waiver.
The pastor of the Freedom Church, Harold Trujillo, who objects to the Total Wine establishment, wrote in a letter to the City Council that the church does use the lot. During the council meeting Wednesday night, he said an
event took place there as recently as the Fourth of July.
Some city councilors cited the pastor’s opposition in rejecting the waiver; others said the Total Wine application did not meet the criteria for a waiver. Councilor Chris Rivera, who said he attends the Freedom Church, recused himself from the vote.
The next steps for the proposed Total Wine store are not clear. Assistant City Attorney Alfred Walker wrote in a review of the situation that “if the waiver is not granted, litigation will ensue, and the courts will answer the question.”
Several councilors acknowledged the possibility of litigation or a state alcohol board decision on the liquor license transfer.
During a public hearing on the waiver, opponents of the proposed store raised several issues. A repeated concern was that the store’s vast selection of wine, beer and spirits might contribute to alcohol abuse.
Maryland-based Total Wine & More calls itself the country’s largest independent wine retailer. Its selections also include beer and liquor. A typical Total Wine location, according to its website, will carry more than 8,000 wines, 3,000 spirits and 2,500 beers.
Democratic gubernatorial candidate Peter DeBenedittis, an alcohol prevention advocate, said whatever economic benefit the store might bring to the area would be more than mitigated by the societal and human costs of easier access to alcohol. Approving another local liquor store “flies in the face of prevention” efforts, he said.
Jon Hendry, president of the New Mexico Federation of Labor, said the Total Wine store would put the screws to small businesses. On top of that, he said, “If there’s one thing we don’t need in Santa Fe, it’s cheaper liquor.”
Representatives of Total Wine said they would be a valuable community partner and that their clientele’s interest primarily in high-end wine would not pose a risk to the area.
“We are one of the more responsible alcohol retailers in this country,” said Robert Schafer, counsel and a vice president of Total Wine. “That’s why we’re as successful as we are.”
Contact Tripp Stelnicki at 505-428-7626 or tstelnicki@sfnewmexican.com.