Beer Board

CITY OF BRISTOL, TENNESSEE MINUTES OF THE BEER BOARD MEETING HELD FEBRUARY 18, 2015 BOARD MEMBERS PRESENT CITY EMPLOYEES PRESENT Mr. Craig Kistner – Chairman Chief Blaine Wade Mr. Mike Ketron – Vice Chairman Capt. Glenn James Mr. Vince Turner Inv. Mike Carlson Mr. Spike Tickel Mr. Jack Hyder Ms. Robin Stedman Call to Order – At approximately 5:00 pm on February 18, 2015, Mr. Kistner, Chairman of the Beer Board for the City of Bristol, Tennessee, called the meeting to order in the Conference Room of the Ewell L. Easley Municipal Bldg., located at 104 Eighth St., Bristol, Tennessee. Review of Minutes – Board Members reviewed the minutes of the January 21, 2015 meeting, the minutes were approved as read. NEW BUSINESS Village Food Mart & More, 1807 King College Rd., Bristol, TN – Mr. Nailesh Patel appeared before the Board to request an Off Premises Permit. Capt. James said this is the former Village Square location, he advised the Application is in order, fees paid, inspection completed, and training attended on January 20, 2015. Mr. Kistner asked Mr. Patel if he has prior experience, Mr. Patel said he does, he worked in a convenience store in Tennessee. Mr. Tickle advised he is glad to see another store opening in this location, and warned there will be attempts by underage customers to buy beer and warned them to be very careful. Mr. Kistner called for questions/comments from the public, there being none he called for a Motion. Mr. Turner made a Motion to approve the Application, seconded by Mr. Tickel. Mr. Kistner called for a vote, the Motion was approved by unanimous vote. All American Campground, 251 White Top Rd., Bristol, TN – Capt. James advised Ms. Shirley Carrier, Owner, submitted an Application for renewal of her Temporary Off Premises Permit in the campground adjacent Bristol Motor Speedway. Her Representative, Mr. A. D. Jones, Jr. was held up in another meeting and could not make this one. Mr. Hyder advised it is not necessary for Mr. Jones or Ms. Carrier to be present since this is for a renewal, not an initial request. Capt. James advised this is the third renewal and there are no changes to the site plan. Mr. Kistner asked about previous violations, Capt. James said there have been none. Mr. Kistner called for questions/comments from the public, there being none he called for a Motion. Mr. Turner made a Motion to approve the Application, seconded by Mr. Ketron. Mr. Kistner called for a vote, the Motion was approved by unanimous vote. Statice Inc., d/b/a Machiavelli’s, 2744 and 2745 Hwy 11E, Bristol, TN – Mr. David Jun, Co- Owner, appeared before the Board to request renewal of 6 Temporary Off Premises Permits located in Earhart East and West, adjacent Bristol Motor Speedway. Capt. James advised this is 1 the first renewal on these permits, the site maps are in order, and there are no previous problems at any of the locations. Mr. Kistner thanked Mr. Jun for the vigilance of his employees in ensuring no sales were made to underage customers. Mr. Tickel asked if employees working each site are regular or temporary, Mr. Jun advised he uses both, at least one regular at each site with trained temporary employees. Capt. James advised all Machiavelli’s employees are State Certified in alcohol sales. Mr. Tickel asked if they have had any problems checking IDs, Mr. Jun related it is second nature to his regular employees who remain firm on seeing an ID before allowing anyone to purchase alcohol. Mr. Tickel asked if it is a manual check, or if the DOB is entered in the cash register, Mr. Jun advised it is manual only. Mr. Kistner asked about dealing with a wide range of state IDs, Mr. Jun stated a regular employee is the one who checks IDs, not a temporary employee. Mr. Kistner called for questions/comments from the public, there being none he called for a Motion. Mr. Ketron made a Motion to approve the Applications, seconded by Mr. Tickel. Mr. Kistner called for a vote, the Motion was approved by unanimous vote. Nazir and Sons, Inc., d/b/a Plaza Exxon, 1385 Volunteer Pkwy., Bristol, TN – Mr. Imran Nazir, Owner, was summoned to appear before the Board for the Violation of selling alcohol to an underage Confidential Informant (CI) during an Alcohol Sales Compliance Check. Capt. James advised the Police Dept. Street Crimes Unit (SCU) conducted a compliance check at Plaza Exxon on January 27, 2015 during which beer was sold to an underage CI, Mr. Kistner asked how many businesses were checked, he related more than 30 businesses were checked with only one failure. Capt. James advised this business has had an Off Premises Permit for almost one year and this is their first violation. Mr. Kistner called Inv. Carlson, he advised an underage CI, DOB December 13, 1996 was used to conduct the checks. The CI was instructed to use his legally issued State ID which states “Under 21 until December 13, 2017” if asked for ID and give his true date of birth if asked. He went into the business, got a 24 oz can of beer and took it to the cashier, he was asked for his ID and he showed his drivers license, the cashier looked at it and sold the beer. The CI left with the beer and gave it to Inv. Carlson who emptied it and returned to the business, identified himself, and issued a State Citation. Mr. Kistner asked for a copy of the CI’s ID, which Inv. Carlson gave to him, and asked if the cashier looked at the ID or entered the DOB in the cash register, Inv. Carlson advised he only looked at it. Mr. Tickel asked if the cashier gave an explanation, Inv. Carlson said he did not. There were no further questions for Inv. Carlson. Mr. Kistner called Mr. Nazir before the Board, he related he made a mistake, he did take the alcohol sales class, but he worked from 6 am that morning until that evening alone, was tired, and miscalculated. He advised he is looking into getting a cash register that requires a DOB before the sale can be completed. Mr. Turner asked if he is putting one in now, Mr. Nazir related he has just started looking into them and who can install one. Mr. Turner pointed out the drivers license says the owner is underage and gives the date he will turn 21. Mr. Nazir agreed he must look more carefully, even if it makes checkout a little slower for his customers. Mr. Kistner asked about the history of penalty’s on first violations, Capt. James advised the Board has been issuing a 10 day Suspension, with the option of a $1500 Civil Penalty. Mr. Tickel stated he believes they should stay with that, and made a Motion to Suspend the Permit for 10 days, with the option of a $1500 Civil Penalty, seconded by Mr. Ketron. There being no further discussion Mr. Kistner called for a vote. The Motion was approved by unanimous vote. 2 Capt. James advised the original agenda called for Ms. Melony Ison of the Sullivan County Anti Drug Coalition to address the Board. However, due to the weather she was unable to make it and requested it be rescheduled. She wants make a short presentation to the Board concerning their efforts to reduce the use of alcohol, tobacco, and drugs, and the Wine In Grocery Stores Legislation Mr. Kistner instructed Capt. James to reschedule her, and brief her on the Boards responsibilities and limitations. PENDING BUSINESS Capt. James requested a meeting for March 2015 as he has several Applications in hand to be presented to the Board. Mr. Kistner scheduled a meeting for March 18, 2015. There being no further business to conduct the meeting was adjourned. 3