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08-1348Council File # �8' �3 Green Sheet #,3o%�f�/9S F Presented by IUIINNESOTA 1� 1 4VHEREAS, Civitali Restaurant Corporation, doing business as Punch Neapolitan Pizza 2(Application I.D. #2QQ80000Q98), located at 769 Gxand Avenue in Saint Paul, has applied for a 3 class N license to add Liquor-Outdoor Service Area (Patio) to its existing licenses for Wine On- 4 Sale, Malt On-Sale (Strong) and Restaurant (4) — 51-150 Seats; and 5 � 7 8 9 WHEREAS, Punch Neapolitan Pizza's residential properties are within a 300 foot radius of licensee's proposed patio, and licensee has obtained consent from seventy-five percent (75%) of those properties; and 10 WHEREAS, licensee sent out letters with pre-paid return envelopes seeking support from a list of I1 private residences provided by the Department of Safety and Inspection and was unable to obtain the 12 ninety percent (90%} consent despite following up with a door-to-door survey for the xemaining 13 residences who had not responded to the mailed letters; and 14 IS 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 WHEREAS, licensee, per City of Saint Paul Legislative Code 409.06(g)(2)(b), was able to receive consent from seventy-five percent (75%) of residential owners of which they received one negative response that did not directly oppose Punch Neapolitan Pizza but rather to the numbers of bars along the Grand Avenue area; and WHEREAS, the Council finds that these efforts constitute a good faith effort to fulfill all petition requirements, and that the results of the attempts to obtain signatures showed a generally favorable disposition from the surrounding community toward the proposed licensed activity; and 25 WHEREAS, the Council finds that issuance of the license will not interfere with the reasonable 26 use and enjoyment of neighboring property and residences and will not bear adversely on the 27 health, safety, morals and general welfare of the community; and 28 29 WHEREAS, the Legislative Hearing Officer recommends that the application for a Liquor- 30 Ontdoor Service Area (Patio) license for Punch Neapolitan be approved with the following 31 conditions: 32 33 1. Per City of Saint Paul Legislative Code 409.15(a)(2), On-sale Wine license shall mean a 34 license authorizing the sale of Wine not exceeding fourteen (14) percent alcohol by 35 volume, for consurnption on the license premises only in conjunction with the sale of food. OS� t3�$ 36 The sale of Malt (Strong) will also take place only in conjunction with the sale and service 37 of food. 38 2. Per City of Saint Paul Legislative Code 409.15(d), licensee must be able to show that gross 39 receipts are at least sixty (60) percent attributable to the sale of food. 40 3. Licensee will submit to the Departrnent of Safety and Inspections annual gross receipts for 41 food and liquor for each year the license is renewed. 42 43 THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Council of the City of Saint Paul hereby approves this 44 license application with the aforementioned conditions. Yeas Nays Absent Bostrom � Carter ,/ Harris Helgen � Lantry � Stark Thune � � Adopted by Council: Date ���/��j�� Adoption Certified by Council Secxetary By' — / r // / Approved� ��� : f/Data ( y ( (} � By: —�— Requested by Department ot � Form Approved by CiTy Attorney � Form Approved by Mayor for Submission to Council By: � Green Sheet Green Sheet Green Sheet Green Sheet Green Sheet Green Sheet �� � ���Q � DepartmenU�celCouncil: Date Initiated: co-�°°°°�� Zo-NO�-0B Green Sheet NO: 3064495 Contact Person & Phon¢: Department Sent To Person InitiallDate Nhia Vanp o ouo�u 0 266-8566 I ouocil De arhnentDirector Assign Z ' Clerk Ci Clerk Must Be on Council Agenda by (DateJ: Number 3 0 03-DEC-08 F°r q O RoUting Doc.Type:RESOLUTION Order 5 0 E-Document Required: Y Document Contact: �ean Birkholz ConWct Phone: 266-8673 ToWI # of Signature Pages, (Clip All Locations for Signature) Action Requested: Approving [he license application with conditions, per the Legislative Hearing Officer, for a Liquor-Outdoor Service Area (Patio) license by Civitali Restaurant Corp., doing business as Punch Neapolitan Pizza, 769 Grand Avenue. Recommendations: Approve (A) or Reject (R): Personal Service Contracts Must Answer the Following Questions: Plan�ing Commission 1. Has this person/firm ever worked under a contrad Por this department? CIB CommiHee Yes No CivilService Commiss�on 2. Has this persoNfirm ever been a city employee? Yes No 3. Does this person/firm Dossess a skill not normally possessed by any current city employee7 Yes No F�cplain all yes answers on separete sheet and attach to green sheet. Initiating Problem, Issues, Opportunity (Who, What, When, Where, Why): Advantages If Approved: Disadvantages If Approved: Disadvantages If Not Approved: Total Amount of Transaction: CosURevenue Budgeted: Funtling Source: Activity Number: Financial Infortnation: (F�cplain) November 20, 2008 12:05 PM Page 1 LICENSE HEARING MINUTES �� �� 3 �g Punch Neapolitan Pizza at 769 Grand Avenue Monday, November 34, 2008, 930 a.m. 330 City Hall, 15 Kellogg Boulevazd West NhiaVang, Deputy Legislative Heazing Officer The hearing was called to order at 9:33 a.m. Staff Present: Kristina Schweinler and Reid Soley, Department of Safety and Inspections (DSI); and 3ean Birkholz, Council Research Others Present: John Puckett and John Soranno, co-owners; Jenny Nyquist, manager; Blois Olson, Public Relations; and Tami Deen, Winthrop and Weinstine Request for License: Liquor-Outdoor Service Area (Patio) to be added to the existing licenses for Wine On-Sale, Malt On-Sale (Strong) and Restaurant (4) – 51-150 Seats Ms. Vang stated that this is an informal legislative hearing for a license application. This is a Class N notification which means that the neighborhood gets noYified and has a chance to voice its concerns. If anyone has a concern, it automatically triggers a hearing. Other Class N Licenses include auto sales, auto repair, entertainment, cabaret, tattoo parlor, eta—things that have an immediate impact on the neighborhood. The City received two (2) letters of concern regarding the issuance of this license. The goal today is to develop a recommendation for the City Council to consider. Ultimately, there are three (3) possible outcomes of this heazing: I) Ms. Vang may recommend to the City Council that they issue this license without any conditions; 2) she may recommend to the City Council that they issue this license with agreed upon conditions; or 3) she may recommend to the City Council that they not issue this license but refer it to an administrative law judge for a further hearing and findings. Ms. Vang will make her recommendation in the form of a resolution that will go before the City Council for their approval. Tt will appear on the Consent Agenda at a City Council meeting. Ms. Vang will begin with a staff report. Staff will be asked to explain their review of the application and will also explain their recommendation. Then, she will ask the applicant to talk about the business plan. Next, she will hear from those people who are here in support of the issuance of this license and those with concerns about the issuance of this license; and, she will review the email and letter that were sent regarding this application. Mr. Reid Soley, DSI, reported that there are three (3) existing conditions that have been placed on this license, which are standard conditions that are placed on all new licenses that are issued far restaurants that have wine and strong beer: 2. 3. Per City of Saint Paul Legislative Code 40915(a)(2), On-sale Wine license shall mean a license authorizing the sale of Wine not exceeding fourteen (14) percent alcohol by volume, for consumption on the license premises only in conjunction with the sale of food. The sale of Malt (Strong) will also take place only in conjunction with the sale and service of food. Per City of Saint Paul Legislative Code 409.15(d), licensee must be able to show that gross receipts are at least sixty (60) percent attributable to the sale of food. Licensee will submit to the Department of Safety and Inspections annual gross receipts for food and liquar for each year the ]icense is renewed. ax�l3�S On October 1, 2008, Summit Hill Association (District 16} submitted a letter recommending a 9:30 p.m. cut-off for liquor service on the patio. The letter also reported that a District 16 committee member and a member of the public wimessed illegal service of alcoholic beverages on Punch Pizza's patio. All inspection requirements have been approved. DSI recommends approval with the above conditions; and DSI has no problem with the recommendation of District 16. Mr. John Puckett provided a handout for people attending the hearing. Mr. Puckett stated that he and John Soranno aze co-owners of Civitali Restaurant Corporation, doing business as Punch Neapolitan Pizza. Mr. Soranno started a Punch Neapolitan Pizza in Highland Village on Cleveland Avenue in Saint Paul thirteen (13) years ago. There is a patio with beer and wine service at that store. There have been no patio complaints to the City of Saint Paul and no liquor violations over that time. They believe that they aze a very reputable operator that values strong neighborhood relationships. They sell, primarily, pizza and salads. Their business is more than 90 percent food. Their hours are from I 1 a.m. to 10 p.m. every night. They tried to get 90 percent approval from the neighborhood; they came close. They sent out prepaid return envelopes to everyone on the mailing list provided by the City of Saint Paul. They also went door to door to all residences and property owners who had not responded to their letter. They reached nearly 75 percent of the property owners. Of that 75 percent, they got approval from 36 out of 37 owners--97 percent approval. There was an additional one (1) letter of opposition (not Punch specific — just opposed to the number of bazs that already exist on Grand Avenue). Ms. Vang asked Mr. Puckett his reason far expanding onto the patio. Mr. Puckett replied that they will not choose a property that doesn't offer patio service. All of their six (6) pizzerias (Highland, North East Minneapolis, Hennepin and University, Lake Calhoun, Saint Louis Park, Eden Prairie and Wayzata) in the Twin Cities have patios, which are very important to their business. All of their pizzerias serve wine and beer. Their initial restaurant is full service and they actually serve wine and beer on that patio. The rest of their restaurants are quick service where people order in a cafeteria sTyle, pick-up a tray and sit either on the patio or inside. At the Crrand Avenue site, they have posted signs at the cash register and at the door that state They aze in the process of getting their beer and wine license far the patio, and, due to Saint Paul Ordinance, patrons may not take their beerfwine outside. They have been training staff to make sure people do not do that, as well. Mr. Puckett noted that they have had to ask several people to bring their beverage back inside. Ms. Jenny Nyquist, general manager, stated that they employ about thirty (30) people. Approximately 100 — 200 people pass through their doors per day; on weekends, iYs closer to 400. The patio has ten (10) tables for approximately 30 people and is enclosed within a fence. Ms. Vang asked Mr. Puckett what time he intends to close the patio. He responded, "10 p.m." He found the district counciPs recommendation of closing the patio at 930 p.m., odd, since they're closing at 10 p.m. anyway. Ms. Vang asked why no one from Punch Neapolitan was able to make it to the district council meeting. Mr. Puckett answered that they regret no one was able to make it but there was a communication problem. He explained that around Labor Day weekend, they had asked the Summit Hi11 Association to write a ietter of support to Daue Thune asking them to waive the 45-day wait period. However, they were unable to get that support letter written without a full neighborhood meeting. The neighborhood meeting could not be scheduled until after patio season was over, so they elected to go 2 0�-13�8 through the normal process. Punch Neapolitan, instead, left a message for Jeff Roy at the district council letting him know that they did not need the districYs assistance regarding the 45-day wait period. Unfortunately, the district did not get that message. Previously, they had met with the district council; ihey spent hours with the neighborhood in two (2) separate meetings. They showed the district council their plan even before they signed their lease. Ms. Vang asked whether they have signs out on the patio tables asking patrons to keep their volume low. Mr. Puckett responded that they do not. The age of their customers is from thirty (30) to sixTy (60) years. Most noise comes from children who aze not in the restaurant later on in the evening. If they had customers making noise because of drinking, they would toss them out. Their customers want to eat their pizza in peace with a glass of winelbeer. Most of their customers walk to the restaurant and it's one of the busiest restaurants they have opened; very family oriented. Ms. Vang asked how many restaurants of this type are in the Grand Avenue area, Ms. Schweinler responded that the City does not have that many wine and beer establishments with patios; most are full liquor establishments with a patio. Ms. Vang asked how frequently they provide staff with alcohol server training. Mr. Puckett replied that he goes through the training materials and trains their managers; they, in turn, train staff who interact with patrons. Initial training is from two (2) to three (3) days. Ms. Nyquist responded that liquor training is something they take very seriously; and they make sure that a manager is on duty at all times. Mr. Soranno added that they don't have many drinking-age kids as patrons. The restaurant's current sale of wine and beer is less than 10 percent. Ms. V ang reviewed the letter of objection sent by Karen Chen. She believes that there are enough bars already in the area. Ms. Vang asked what kind of tableware is used to serve on the patio. Mr. Puckett responded tt�at they use plastic plates and paper cups; trash bins are located on the patio for quick, easy disposal. He added that they are a locally-owned small business and are adamant about cleanliness and picking-up trash. In addition, he stated that this location was a grim looking old Kentucky Fried Chicken building and they put $1.25M into it, which has significantly improved the neighborhood. Ms. Vang asked if they lrnew that the City of Saint Paul has a graffiti policy and have they taken advantage of it. Mr. Serrano responded that they did not know and they would like to take advantage of it because they have had some issues with graffiti. Ms. Vang provided the applicants with the proper form. Mr. Serrano stated that they have their own paint and whenever they're tagged, they go out the next day and paint over it. Ms. Vang asked about the dimensions of the patio. Mr. Senano replied that it's between 200-300 square feet. She asked if any customers smoke out on the patio. Mr. Serrano responded that smoking is not allowed on the patio. Ms. Vang encouraged the applicants to seriously consider a 9:30 p.m. closing of the patio as recommended by the district council. Mr. Puckett stated that they had met with Councilmember Dave Thune last week who told them that he thought I 0:00 p.m. was a very appropriate time to close the patio. Ms. Schweinler added that the City has no earlier closing conditions on either Billy's or Dixie's patio; they close at 2:00 a.m. Mr. Serrano added that as far as the patio goes, the later it gets, the quieter the people on the patio are because their older clientele come later in the day. c 08 �13�8 Ms. Tammy Dean, Winthrop and Weinstine, stated that their concern about a 9:30 p.m. patio close time as a condition on the license, whether it be voluntarily accepted or imposed, is that it's treating this establishment differently from the other patio establishments azound them. If it is included as a license condition, it removes the flexibility that the applicants have in terms of maybe extending that time a little bit in the summer. She added that they are more than committed to working with the neighborhood group but they would not be willing to voluntarily agree to a 9:30 p.m. closing rime as a license condition. Ms. V ang responded that each business is treated individually; it depends on what types of concerns are raised. Mr. Senano pointed out that during their thirteen (13) years of having been in business, they have never had a noise complaint in any of their restaurants; and none of their patios have music. Ms. Vang took a recess at 10:02 a.m. The hearing was reconvened at 10:11 a.m. Ms. Vang stated that after verifying information with Councilmember Thune, she would recommend to the City Council that they approve this license application with the conditions recommended by DSI. Mr. Soley stated that the Conditions Affidavit has been signed. The hearing was adjourned at 10:13 a.m. /jab