(Poll) Should Proposed Convenience Store Near School Sell Beer, Wine?

Deanndra Palmer-Ataallah wants to open up a convenience store in the heart of downtown Arcadia, but the Planning Commission won't allow her to sell alcohol because her proposed establishment would sit just 295 ft. away from .

Neighbors, business owners and educators brought their concerns regarding Palmer-Ataallah's proposal to stock her 207 S. First Ave. store with high-end beers and wines to the Planning Commission on Tuesday during a hearing on the matter.

With little comment, planning commissioners unanimously approved Palmer-Ataallah's request to open the store on the condition that she ditch her plans to sell any type of alcohol.

"We were not proposing to becoming a liquor store," Palmer-Ataallah said, adding that she, nor her employees, would ever sell alcohol to kids. "My goal was to be a modern, smaller version of Trader Joe's."

Now, Palmer-Ataallah must decide whether to accept the Planning Commission ruling, appeal it, or scout for a different location altogether and start the approval process from scratch.

Though plans outlined in her conditional use permit application indicated Palmer-Ataallah would only stock 3 percent of the store's 29,000-square-feet with beer and wine, those opposing her application said selling any alcohol so close to a middle school would encourage crime and student delinquency.

"Liquor can only have a negative effect on (students)," First Avenue Principal Jeff Wilson told planning commissioners.

Wilson said the school has experienced problems with students committing alcohol-fueled acts of vandalism on or near the campus, along with sexual activity and marijuana use amongst students.

But if Palmer-Ataallah decides to appeal the Planning Commission's decision and wins, there won't be much Wilson — or anyone — can do.

The state Alcoholic Beverage Control department has the right to deny a retail permit to any establishment within 600 feet of a school, but has no mandate to do so.

Helen Wang owns , a popular after-school hang out for First Avenue students. She, too, expressed worry that an establishment selling alcohol could compromise student safety.

"We can just imagine what type of clientele these kids will be exposed to" Wang said, adding "Hyper Coffee has always been a quiet and safe place for people to study and have meetings."

What do you think? Is the proposed convenience store too close to First Avenue Middle School to sell alcohol?