ATTACHMENT 7
Law Office of Joseph L. Stine
2173 Salk Ave., Suite 250 (760) 579-7694
Carlsbad, CA 92008 fax: (760) 579-7695
www.jstinelaw.com [email protected]
Jan. 30, 2023
Honorable Mayor and City Councilmembers
City of San Clemente
910 Calle Negocio
San Clemente, CA 92673
Re: Feb. 7, 2023, Appeal Hearing
Primo Foods: Application for Minor Conditional Use Permit Dear Mayor Duncan and City Councilmembers:
I represent Primo Foods San Clemente ("Primo Foods") in connection with its application for a minor conditional use permit (MCUP) to sell beer and wine for off-site consumption. This application comes to the City Council on an appeal initiated by 2022 mayor and now City Councilman Gene James.
This letter is offered in support of this MCUP application and I will be appearing with Mr. Assi at the City Council appeal hearing.
Background
Mr. Assi lives in northern San Diego County where he operates Primo Focus nakes sale so a varice nine respect, vels The are community markets locusing on the sale of a variety of meats,
prepared Mexican foods. Customers coming to these markets for food also can purchase beer and wine for off-sale consumption. Market staff strictly prohibits the drinking of any alcoholic beverage on-site.
In 2022, Mr. Assi expanded his business into southern Orange County. He purchased a retail zoned lot with small one-story building at corner of South El Camino Real and San Luis Rey. The building was previously a bicycle shop and needed substantial renovations to use it as a food market. There is no room for onsite parking. The lot is surrounded by tightly spaced condominium and apartment buildings. Street parking is limited in the immediate neighborhood.
In October, Primo Foods San Clemente opened its doors as a small neighborhood market easily accessible by foot or bicycle to people in the San Luis Rey area. It sells fresh meats, fish, fruits, and vegetables. It also has a kitchen which prepares tacos, burritos, salads, and other site-prepared entries for off-site consumption. There are no tables for onsite eating and drinking.
Primo Foods is a quick "in and out" niche market which encourages customers to purchase a few select items and leave. Most customers walk or ride bicycles to the market. Those small numbers of customers arriving by motor vehicle have no reason to occupy curb-side parking spaces for more than 15 minutes. Signs on San Luis Rey along the curb next to Primo limit parking to 24 minutes.
Primo Foods San Clemente is a small walkable, bikeable neighborhood market offering customers a limited number of food, drink, and accessory items.
From the outset, Mr. Assi has planned to offer his customers the convenience of making incidental purchases of beer and wine for off-site consumption in much the same way he offers these beverages in his stores in Vista and Oceanside.
Procedural History
The City's zoning ordinance permits a retail establishment such as a small food market on Mr. Assi's corner lot. Beer and wine sales for off-site consumption, however, require a minor conditional use permit (MCUP) issued through an administrative hearing process.
On June 14, 2022, before the market opened for business, Mr. Assi applied for a MCUP for beer and wine sales for off-site consumption. He would like to put a limited selection of beer in the same cooler that stocks soft drinks, iced tea, and fruit juices in order to give customers a variety of drink choices. He wants to offer customers a mixture of beverage options ancillary to the core food offerings which bring them to the market.
On November 3, 2022, a hearing was held before City Zoning Administrator Cecilia Gallardo-Daly on Primo Foods' application. There was no opposition or objection to the application at the hearing.
After the hearing, the Zoning Administrator issued Resolution No. ZA 22- 020 approving the MCUP for Primo Foods. She found as follows: 1) the proposed use complies with all applicable local land use laws; 2) the Primo Foods site "is suitable for the type and intensity of use that is proposed"; 3) beer and wine sale for off-site consumption at the site "will not be detrimental to the public health, safety or welfare, or materially injurious to properties and improvements in the vicinity"; and 4) the use "will not negatively impact surrounding land uses". 2 At the City Council meeting of Nov. 15, 2022, then-Mayor Gene James called Primo Foods' MCUP for appeal.
On December 20, 2022, the appeal on Primo Foods' MCUP was continued to Feb. 7, 2023, at Primo's request to allow time for further discussion between Mr. Assi and city staff on ways to address the issues which may have caused the appeal.
On Jan. 18, 2023, Mr. Assi and I met at City Hall with Councilman James, City Attorney Scott Smith, and members of City staff to discuss concerns raised by the proposed MCUP. At that meeting, Mr. Assi and I learned that the issue resulting in the Council appeal was the limited public parking around Primo Foods as well as illegal parking in the public alley at the rear of the Primo lot.
On January 24, 2023, I met at City Hall with city staff to discuss ways of addressing the City's parking concerns in the area around Primo Foods. Several ideas were discussed, including assisting law enforcement in preventing illegal alley parking, installing a bike rack in front of the market, erecting signage on the Primo lot directing motorists looking for parking away from the alley, and conducting an informal survey at the market to determine how customers get there.
In the wake of this city staff meeting, Mr. Assi has been looking into each of the ideas for addressing parking challenges around Primo Foods.
Argument Supporting the Primo Foods MCUP
Primo Foods San Clemente is a small neighborhood market which focuses on the sale of meat, fish, and in-house prepared salads, tacos, burritos, ceviche, and specialty food items. Its principal customer base is people living, working, or recreating in the immediate vicinity of the store. As such, travel to the market on foot or by bicycle is primary and driving there by motor vehicle is secondary.
Primo is NOT a liquor store and, with the approval of this minor conditional use permit, would NOT become a liquor store. Customers are drawn to Primo Foods for its unique offerings of fresh fruits, vegetables, meats, fish, and specially prepared foods. The reason that people shop there will NOT change if beer and wine are offered for sale ancillary to its food offerings.
Under a MCUP, customers entering the market to purchase tacos could also pick up a bottle of wine or a six pack of beer before leaving market. It would be a customer convenience removing the need to drive to a liquor, grocery, or 3 convenience store to purchase alcohol. A similar convenience is offered to customers of Primo Vista and Primo Oceanside in northern San Diego County.
As such, there is no reason to believe or suspect that ancillary beer and wine sales will have an adverse impact on the limited curbside parking on San Luis Rey near Primo Foods. Primo's business model is not based on attracting customers to purchase beer or wine. (Those customers are better served by area liquor, convenience, or grocery stores.) Most of its customers walk or bike to it from the neighborhood. Its appeals to customers as a "quick stop", "get-and-go" market; for motorists, there is curbside parking along San Luis Rey to allow them to briefly shop at the market, return to their vehicles, and drive away.
Accordingly, permitting beer/wine sales at Primo Foods will NOT exacerbate parking challenges in the neighborhood. Customers primarily walk or ride bicycles to the market. It is a neighborhood establishment. Few out-of- neighborhood customers will drive to Primo to purchase name brand beer and wine that could be purchased at stores closer to where they live. Put simply, there is no evidence to suggest that motorists will flock to Primo Foods to make purchases of their favorite beer or wine. It is not that kind of market! Nevertheless, Primo Foods is committed to taking reasonable steps to address long standing parking challenges in its immediate vicinity. Mr. Assi has proactively met with city staff to discuss ways that his market can address parking challenges in the area and is in the process following through on their ideas for improving area parking. Primo is a neighborhood market and, as such, wants to be an asset to the neighborhood.
For these reasons, Mr. Assi requests that the City Council affirm the Zoning Administrator Resolution ZA 22-020 approving Minor Conditional Use Permit (MCUP) 22-197 to permit the sale of beer and wine for off-site consumption at Primo Foods San Clemente.
Very truly yours,
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Joseph L. Stine
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