MOUNT GREENWOOD — Opening a liquor store in Mount Greenwood is about to get tougher.
An ordinance that places a moratorium on liquor stores in the western portion of the 19th Ward will go before the Chicago's Committee on License and Consumer Protection at 11 a.m. Thursday.
The ordinance presented by Ald. Matt O'Shea (19th) will be heard in Room 300, Suite 45 in City Hall. The move will not impact existing stores that sell alcohol.
"We don't need more package liquor," O'Shea said Tuesday, referring to the specific language of the ordinance.
The moratorium would be placed on 111th Street from Sacramento to Cicero avenues; on 115th Street from Kedzie to Cicero avenues and on Kedzie Avenue from 103rd to 115th streets, O'Shea said.
The moratorium is divided into two-block increments. This allows the restriction to be lifted in small areas — should a business seek a license — without having to relaunch the entire effort, O'Shea said.
The Far Southwest Side alderman isn't against lifting the ban to accommodate a sought-after liquor store, using Binny's Beverage Depot as an example. However, such a user would first need community support before any changes could be made.
Without the moratorium in place, residents could still be able to block a liquor store from coming into the area, but a more focused effort would be required. Specifically, residents would need to make the case that the business would be a detriment to the neighborhood, O'Shea said.
"If someone wanted to come in and put package liquor — a liquor store — in the neighborhood, this gives residents a seat at the table," said O'Shea, adding that a similar moratorium was placed along commercial areas including 95th Street, Western Avenue and elsewhere prior to his term as alderman.
O'Shea passed similar bans in the eastern portions of the 19th Ward last fall.
Should the latest ban be approved by the committee it will make its way to the full City Council April 19.
