Council recommends retail liquor license for Celtic Smoke Shop to state commission after public hearing

Columbus City Council on April 7 voted to recommend that the Nebraska Liquor Control Commission approve a retail Class D liquor license application for NYC Tobacco LLC, which plans to operate as Celtic Smoke Shop at 232220 Third Street in Columbus.

The recommendation followed a short public hearing during which David Houghton, representing the applicant, said the shop’s hours would be 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily. Houghton offered to answer council questions about the business.

Council members asked about age-verification and staff training. The applicant’s manager, Abraham Albin Saab (listed on the application as Ibrahim Almansab), described a point-of-sale system with an ID-scanning device that produces a red indicator for under-21 IDs and a green indicator for patrons 21 or older. "We have a point of sale and we have, like, a machine where you could just scan the ID in it and it tell you if all over 21 or under 21," Saab said.

Saab was not present at the start of the hearing; the application lists him as the manager. After the council closed the hearing, a motion to forward a recommendation of approval to the Nebraska Liquor Control Commission passed on a voice vote.

The council did not record roll-call votes in the minutes. The recommendation means the final licensing decision will be made by the state commission.

The application and the council’s recommendation will be part of the record submitted to the Nebraska Liquor Control Commission; no construction or operating permit was discussed during the hearing.