The Baltimore County Board of Liquor Commissioners granted a Lansdowne neighborhood market's application for a transfer of an alcohol license Monday, Feb. 27, but denied its request to sell liquor.
The owners of Third Avenue Convenience, the board ruled, may sell beer and wine.
The remainder of the store, owners Shina Patel and her aunt, Bharti Patel, testified, would be used as a grocery and deli.
Both owners declined comment after the hearing.
The application to change the class of the license to allow the sale of liquor met with strong resistance from the Lansdowne Improvement Association, Lansdowne Business and Professional Association and Southwest Leadership Team.
Chris Koloski, first vice president of the Lansdowne Improvement Association, testified on behalf of the three organizations.
In her testimony, Koloski did not argue against the transfer of the existing alcohol license.
"We welcome business to our community," Koloski said, noting the store has been closed several months. "It's just we're trying very hard to address serious problems here, and we fear that any more sales of liquor would cause more problems for our community.
"Due to the declining socioeconomic conditions within the community, we feel the sale of hard liquor would be very detrimental to our community," she testified.
Koloski noted the store's close proximity to St. Clement Church, Lansdowne High School and Sister's Academy.
Four other businesses within a two-mile radius of the convenience store at 132 Third Ave., Koloski noted, can sell liquor.
Her husband, Gary, the president of the association, missed the 1 p.m. hearing in Towson because of work, he said.
"We all believe that the addition of hard liquor is not a good addition to the neighborhood," Gary Koloski said the week before the hearing. "It's detrimental to the neighborhood."
The Patels attempted to alleviate the community's concerns by testifying that they would not sell pints or mini bottles of liquor that are easier to conceal.
Additionally, the Patels offered to have alcohol make up 20 percent or less of the inventory at the 1,800-square-foot store.
"The alcohol is just for the convenience of the customer and to keep the business going," testified Shina, a student at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County.
When delivering its ruling, the board called the community's resistance to accepting a limit on the amount of alcohol the store could sell "shortsighted."
"(The community) could have been better off in the long run agreeing to a 20 percent limitation of the space," the board said. "But we hear clearly from the community that they don't want to add the hard liquor."
After the hearing, Chris Koloski spoke with the Patels and offered to provide ideas and suggestions for the store, invited them to Lansdowne Improvement Association meetings and informed them about the Lansdowne Business and Professional Association.
"We do hope their business is a success, and we're delighted that no more alcohol is going to be allowed into Lansdowne," Koloski said.
When asked how she felt about the ruling, Koloski said, "Very happy. Very happy. Glad it didn't go through."