O2105
f:\atty\mu ni\laws\barry\alcohoICU Pmod2d-1 . wpd
Council Meeting 12-16-03 Santa Monica, California
ORDINANCE NUMBER2.J.!l.L (CCS)
(City Council Series)
AN INTERIM ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SANTA
MONICA CLARIFYING THAT BUSINESS ESTABLISHMENTS WITH ALCOHOL
CUP'S MUST OBTAIN NEW ALCOHOL CUP'S IF THE ESTABLISHMENT CEASES
OPERATING FOR A PERIOD IN EXCESS OF ONE YEAR
THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SANTA MONICA DOES ORDAIN AS
FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. Findings and Purpose. The City Council finds and declares:
(a) In 1985, the City adopted Part 9.0410.18 of the Zoning Ordinance, Alcohol
Outlets, to regulate establishments dispensing alcoholic beverages.
(b) While the issuance of liquor licenses is the exclusive province of the State, local
governments are authorized to impose reasonable land use and zoning restrictions on
alcohol establishments directed at the land use effects of these businesses.
(c) The City adopted the alcohol outlet regulations in recognition of the complex
interrelationship between the availability of alcohol, the consumption of alcohol, and
resulting community problems such as public drunkenness, drunk driving, traffic accidents,
violent crime, noise, and nuisance.
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(d) Santa Monica Municipal Code Section 9.04.18.020 requires all new businesses
or uses dispensing alcoholic beverages for sale or other consideration to obtain a
conditional use permit.
(e) Section 9.04.18.020 also provides that a conditional use permit is required for
existing premises where operations have been discontinued for a period of over one year.
(f) Since this section's adoption, the City has interpreted this provision to apply to
all existing premises including those which already obtained an alcohol CUP,
(g) Certain alcohol establishment owners and operators have challenged this
interpretation, contending that this provision of the Zoning Ordinance only applies to
existing premises that have never obtained an alcohol CUP and not to those which
obtained an alcohol CUP but whose operations have been discontinued for more than one
year.
(h) The purpose of this interim ordinance is to clarify that any existing premises
which dispense alcoholic beverages for sale or other consideration that ceases operation
for a period greater than one year must obtain an alcohol CUP even if that establishment
previously obtained an alcohol CUP.
(i) The City Council finds and declares that the public health, safety and general
welfare require adoption of an interim ordinance clarifying that all existing establishments
which cease operation for more than one year must obtain a new alcohol CUP to ensure
that City review and approval of alcohol outlets occurs on a case-by-case basis and
reflects the specific and current circumstances ofthe particular alcohol outlet, its location,
the surrounding neighborhood and any potential problems relating to specific and current
circumstances.
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U) Therefore, Santa Monica Municipal Code Section 9.04.10.18.020 should be
clarified to provide that existing operations which have been discontinued for a period of
over one year shall be required to obtain an alcohol conditional use permit prior to
resuming business whether or not a conditional use permit was obtained in the past for the
premises.
(k) Pending completion of these permanent revisions, in order to protect the public
health, safety, and welfare, it is necessary on an interim basis to clarify that existing
operations which have been discontinued for a period of over one year shall be required
to obtain an alcohol conditional use permit prior to resuming business whether or not a
conditional use permit was obtained in the past for the premises.
(I) As described above, there exists a current and immediate threat to the public
safety, health, and welfare should this interim ordinance not be adopted. Consequently,
it is necessary for this ordinance to establish on an interim basis the following development
standards
SECTION .2. Alcohol Outlets.
Existing alcohol outlets shall be required to obtain a conditional use permit pursuant
to Section 9.04.10.18.010 et seq. unless the following conditions are met:
(a) The premises retain the same type of retail liquor license within a license
classification and
(b) The licensed premises are operated continuously without substantial change in
mode or character of operation.
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~g premises shalll .. . COnsidered to be operating continuously and a
conditional use permit shall be required where operations have been discontinued for a
period of over one year except that, for premises in the CM District, the time period shall
be six months. Existing premises where operations have been discontinued for a period
of over one year, or six months in the case of premises in the CM District, shall be required
to obtain an alcohol conditional use permit prior to resuming business whether or not an
alcohol conditional use permit was obtained in the past for the premises. A substantial
change in mode or character of operation shall include, but is not limited to, a ten percent
increase in the floor area of the premises, a twenty-five percent increase in the shelf area
used forthe display of alcoholic beverages, or a twenty-five percent increase in the number
of seats in any restaurant which serves alcoholic beverages.
SECTION 3. This Ordinance is declarative of existing law.
SECTION 4. This Ordinance shall be of no further force or effect sixty days after its
effective date unless prior to that date, after a public hearing, noticed pursuant to Santa
Monica Municipal Code Section 9.04.20.22.050, the City Council, by majority vote, extends
this interim ordinance.
SECTION 5. Any provision of the Santa Monica Municipal Code or appendices
thereto inconsistent with the provisions of this Ordinance, to the extent of such
inconsistencies and no further, is hereby repealed or modified to that extent necessary to
affect the provisions of this Ordinance.
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SECTION 6. If any section, subsection, sentence, clause, or phrase of this
OItIIIn_"Ga.'" any reason held tOiIMJinvalid or unconstitutional by a deci..."eIIy...,R
of competent jurisdiction, such decision shall not affect the validity of the remaining
portions ofthis Ordinance. The City Council hereby declares that it would have passed this
Ordinance and each and every section, subsection, sentence, clause, or phrase not
declared invalid or unconstitutional without regard to whether any portion of the ordinance
would be subsequently declared invalid or unconstitutional.
SECTION 7. The Mayor shall sign and the City Clerk shall attest to the passage of
this Ordinance. The City Clerk shall cause the same to be published once in the official
newspaper within 15 days after its adoption. This Ordinance shall become effective 30
days from its adoption.
APPROVED AS TO FORM:
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Approved and adopted this 16th day of December, 2003.
~~ Mayor
State of California )
County of Los Angeles) ss.
City of Santa Monica )
I, Maria M. Stewart, City Clerk of the City of Santa Monica, do hereby certify that the
foregoing Ordinance No. 2105 (CCS) had its introduction on December 9,2003, and
was adopted at the Santa Monica City Council meeting held on December 16, 2003, by
the following vote:
Ayes: Council members: Mayor Bloom, Mayor Pro Tem McKeown, Genser,
O'Connor, Katz, Feinstein
Noes: Council members: None
Abstain: Council members: None
Absent: Council members: Holbrook
ATTEST:
~.~.. )r- &~
Maria M. Stewart, City Clerk
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