The Phoenix City Council voted 7–1 Wednesday to recommend approval of Circle K’s liquor license application for a new store on Seventh and Roosevelt streets, a decision that is at odds with the suggestion from city staff.
The liquor license is for a new store that would open across the street from the existing Circle K on the northeast corner. The store would be larger and include six gas pumps, for a total of 12 fueling stations.
The vote comes after Circle K’s use permit application was approved at a zoning meeting on Tuesday with 13 stipulations that set certain requirements in order for the company to keep the permit. Those stipulations include a ban on sales of single containers of alcohol and security requirements for weekends and special events.
In order to sell alcohol at the new location, Circle K needs the new liquor license. It also needs the use permit because the new store will be within 300 feet of a residential area.
Circle K attempted to build the new station last year but withdrew its use permit application after community pressure and added stipulations.
Kim Moody, Garfield Organization board member and Alwun House founder, said he was disappointed with the council’s decision.
“We’re disappointed with the outcome,” Moody said. “We appreciated hearing the mayor’s support of our position and the breadth of the opposition. We feel like there are a lot of offers being put on the table that make changes, but we don’t feel like those changes will be in place next year, and we don’t believe that they will live up to their promises.”
Suzy Peel, Circle K real-estate development manager for Arizona, said the company would not comment on the results of the meeting.
The council’s decision on the liquor license has been delayed multiple times. At previous meetings, District 8 Councilman Michael Johnson said the reason for delays was to afford more opportunities for community members and Circle K to negotiate.
“This has been a very difficult issue,” Johnson said before the vote. “I will say that I understand the community and their distrust of Circle K. Since the time that Circle K was turned down the first time, we sent a strong message to Circle K that we wanted them to work with the community. I think that Circle K has gone out and reached out to the community.”
In October, nine community organizations cosigned a letter detailing their requests to Circle K. The letter included requests that Circle K adopt a different design for the building, prohibit sales of single containers and provide additional security.
While many of those requests are addressed in the use permit stipulations, Dan Klocke, vice president of development for the Downtown Phoenix Partnership, said during the meeting that he felt the stipulations did not go far enough.
“I, too, would like to thank Councilman Johnson for his support in trying to help us come to a conclusion,” Klocke said. “A nice, new, shiny building is great, but it doesn’t necessarily change corporate culture. That’s why we have these stipulations that we were asking for and Circle K did help with those, and we appreciate that. It fell a little bit short in our minds, and so, from that perspective, we are still opposed to this liquor license.”
Klocke said that some of the things that were missing were changes to the store design, restricting sales of single alcohol containers at other Circle Ks in the Garfield neighborhood and providing 24-hour security.
“We’re actually relatively close,” Klocke said. “We just hope that a couple of other things could happen.”
Nine people spoke in opposition to the liquor license at the meeting and 12 people spoke in favor. However, more people submitted cards opposing Circle K than supporting.
Both sides offered lengthy defenses of their positions and discussion of the issue lasted for an hour and a half. Supporters pointed to Circle K’s actions in Maryvale as evidence that the company could be involved with the community, while those who opposed the license expressed a strong concern about the possibility of increased crime and traffic.
At the start of the meeting, at least five people were wearing shirts that said, “Friends of Circle K.”
John Hammon, one of the people wearing the shirts, said that he and his wife were given the shirts by a man in a green van.
“He said, ‘Here, have a shirt and come down to this place,’ and so we came down here,” Hammon said. “We were told to come down here with our shirts, and somebody gives you 10 bucks or something.”
Peel said that the man distributing the shirts was Jarrett Maupin Sr., the father of Rev. Jarrett Maupin Jr. At the meeting, Maupin Jr. spoke in favor of Circle K. Peel said that Circle K had not offered to pay any of the people in the shirts. All of the people wearing the shirts left the meeting before discussion of Circle K started and were not present for the vote.
Moody said that the community would appeal the decision to the state liquor board.
“The ZA (Zoning Administrator) stipulations are our only promise that there will be improvement,” Moody said. “That’s what we’re living with now, and we will be appealing it to the state liquor board.”
All liquor licenses are approved or denied by the state liquor board. There is a 15-day protest period for complaints. If the board receives complaints during that time, the liquor board will hold a hearing before issuing its decision.
Contact the reporter at travis.arbon@asu.edu
