Originally published Tuesday, April 29, 2008 at 12:00 AM
Ban on 29 cheap, potent beverages falls flat, report says
The liquor industry wins this round. A ban on the sale of 29 cheap fortified wines and strong beers in several Seattle neighborhoods has...
Seattle Times staff reporter
The liquor industry wins this round.
A ban on the sale of 29 cheap fortified wines and strong beers in several Seattle neighborhoods has been ineffective, according to a report presented to the City Council on Monday.
The liquor industry has skirted the ban by introducing different, but similar wines and beers to those barred in target neighborhoods, the report said.
"The ban has been absolutely meaningless," said Bob Scales, an author of the report and a city policy adviser. "Right now it doesn't do anything because the products have been renamed."
Instead of selling banned products such as Night Train Express and Colt 45 Malt Liquor, stores are now stocking Evil Eye, Johnny Bootlegger and Camo Black Ice, the report said.
In a strategy to fight littering, panhandling and public drunkenness, the city sought to restrict the sales of some potent, inexpensive beverages — considered popular with chronic inebriates — in several neighborhoods near downtown.
The Washington State Liquor Control Board resisted banning wine and beer solely on the basis of high alcohol content, said Councilmember Sally Clark, chairwoman of the council's neighborhoods committee. So the city came up with a list of specific brands to prohibit.
Since November 2006, merchants have been barred from selling those brands in a six-square-mile area that includes downtown, Belltown, Capitol Hill, the Central Area, the Chinatown International District and the University District.
As a short-term solution, the report recommends the city now try to get the state liquor board to prohibit the new high-alcohol products. In the longer term, the report said the city should consider a "formula-based" approach, defining banned beverages as those that are cheap and have a certain high level of alcohol.
Clark ascribed the ban's failure to capitalism beating the city's system. "I'd call it greed," said Councilmember Tom Rasmussen.
The city tried to study the ban's impact by looking at 2007 data on alcohol-related calls to the police and fire departments. The research was inconclusive, showing no statistical evidence the ban reduced the number of calls. Calls to the fire department increased in targeted areas, but calls to police were down, as they were citywide.
Community groups, though, perceived that the ban has curbed public intoxication, the report said. That may be because of other factors, Clark said, such as improved treatment programs, including subsidized housing that allows residents to drink.
![]()
The city is not ready to give up its fight, Clark said. "If we tried to take away the ban, I think the community groups would come unglued."
Bob Young: 206-464-2174
Copyright © 2008 The Seattle Times Company
NEW - 01:28 AM
Bombs, guns found at home of suspect in Officer Brenton's slaying
NEW - 12:13 AM
How an underdog named Mike McGinn took City Hall
Danny Westneat: Lee the Horse Logger found slow wagon shrank tumor
Parents want answers on new Seattle school boundaries
3 Cascade Mountain passes close due to snow; more rain, wind expected Sunday

Mourners gather at KeyArena for slain officer's memorial
Mourners gathered at KeyArena for the memorial service of Seattle police Officer Timothy Brenton on November 6, 2009.
nwjobs

Post a comment

Michelle Goodman blogs about work/life balance.
How to tell your office you're gravely ill
Post a comment
nwautos

Choosing a new sedan? Weigh the impact of your choice on your wallet and on the planet.
Post a comment
- Flags were key link to cop slaying, bombings
- Suspect shot as city mourns slain officer
- Briefs | Soccer: New Mexico suspends hair-pulling player Elizabeth Lambert
- McGinn pulling away as late ballots come in
- Using anti-shooter tactics, civilian Army police officer brought down gunman
- Huskies suffer another heartbreaking loss to UCLA
- Consortium on verge of owning Eastside railway land
- Suspect in officer's slaying shot by police
- Heavy snow in Cascades shuts down roads
- Stormy weather to continue today in the Seattle area
- UCLA game thread
938 - Suspect shot as city mourns slain officer
389 - Weapons, bomb-making materials found in suspect's apartment
333 - Troubling portrait emerges of Fort Hood suspect
286 - Decision day for health care in the House
197 - McGinn widens lead over Mallahan in Seattle mayoral race
183 - Schools emerge as new tactic in gay marriage votes
99 - Huskies suffer another heartbreaking loss to UCLA
91 - Referendum 71 show's Washington's strategy for marriage equality is working
74 - Using anti-shooter tactics, civilian Army police officer brought down gunman
71
- Suspect shot as city mourns slain officer
- Flags were key link to cop slaying, bombings
- McGinn pulling away as late ballots come in
- Consortium on verge of owning Eastside railway land
- Guest columnist | Cut the South Carolina jokes, Seattle. Get ready to compete
- Movie review | 'An Education' you won't forget
- Practical Mac | With new features, Apple's MobileMe is worth the price
- H1N1 vaccine for high-risk group coming to King Co. pharmacies
- Shoreline man killed when struck by falling tree part
- Suspect in officer's slaying shot by police





