Aliyya Swaby Photo
Armmand: Liquor outlets bring problems to a neighborhood.
Neighbors fighting one liquor permit on Farren Avenue now have a second one to battle, proposed for two blocks away.
Jose Rodriguez, who recently opened a convenience store at 86 Farren Ave., has submitted a request to the Board of Zoning Appeals seeking an exception to sell liquor less than 1,500 feet away from an existing liquor store at 222 Farren Ave. The board will hold a public hearing inviting discussion on the item Feb. 10 at 6:30 p.m.
Annex neighbors have already been fighting Gemstone Liquors at 222 Farren Ave. for months as its owner Roshan Patel goes through the process of getting a state liquor license.
Because Patel did not ask for any special exceptions, his permit request quickly passed through the zoning board. (Neighbors and alders said they were not notified in time to fight it.) That made it harder to stop his store, which neighbors fear will bring more crime and litter to the area.
Rodriguez, by contrast, is asking for special permission to sell liquor 1,360.83 feet from Patel’s store — the minimum distance required between liquor stores is 1,500 feet.
Kid Rodriguez, Jose’s son, said the store, called Kid Mini Market, would be allowed to sell only beer, so he is not worried about competition. Kid Mini Market opened about a month and a half ago, he said. The previous owners of the property also ran a convenience store and had a liquor license.
Kid said hundreds of neighbors signed a petition in favor of the liquor permit, which will be submitted to the local zoning board. He said he was not aware of any negative reactions. He said his family had not invited neighbors to come to the Feb. 10 meeting to speak on the store’s behalf.
A handful of neighbors gathered at Walk of Faith Church on Fairmont Avenue last Thursday night to discuss strategy for the Feb. 10 public hearing — how to pressure the city to deny the new request and to change its system going forward.
“We know we have one fight that has multiplied into two,” said the church’s pastor, Walter Williams. “If we don’t fight this, we will have no standing in Hartford against Patel.” He said everyone should canvass for individual letters against the convenience store request to bring to the public hearing.
“Are we going to be chasing dots on a map?” said Tom Burwell, co-chair of Ward 14 and a main organizer against Gemstone Liquors. “I just want to make sure we’re fully committed to pushing them out one at a time.”
Neighbor Esther Armmand suggested letters to the zoning board focus on social problems in the neighborhood that a new liquor license would only exacerbate, such as underage drinking and crime, decreasing the possibility of development. She said Annex neighbors should push for the city to take into account social impact when making zoning decisions.
“We’re connecting these issues,” she said. “This is the sort of thing that tends to erode the neighborhood.”
The group is simultaneously preparing for a hearing in the next month with the State Liquor Commission, where members plan to argue against Patel’s store, Gemstone Liquors.