Knoxville Beer Board hears remedial plan from Harbs Market after two sales-to-minor citations; board takes no action, law department requests suspension hearing

Henness Inc., the operator of Harbs Market, presented a remedial plan on March 18 after the store was cited twice for selling alcohol to a minor — on June 28, 2024, and again on Feb. 21, 2025. Mark Stevens, who identified himself as a representative for Henness Inc., told the Beer Board the business had met with him and drafted a five-part remediation plan covering hiring, training, security, signage and point-of-sale controls.

The discussion centered on how to prevent intentional overrides of the store’s point-of-sale system that allowed alcohol sales to proceed without a scanned ID. “They understand it’s serious. They understand it’s been a long term problem for them,” Stevens said, summarizing the business’s position and the work he had undertaken with staff and outside operators to identify corrective steps.

The Beer Board members praised the candor of the presentation and debated whether the board should accept the remedial plan or refer the matter to a suspension-and-revocation hearing. Councilman Roberto recommended taking no action and accepting the plan as the avenue the board would use for compliance monitoring. Councilwoman Singh agreed. The chair then announced, “we’ll take no action at this time,” effectively leaving the plan in place for the business to implement while monitoring for future violations.

During closing remarks, Beer Board legal staff notified the board that the remedial plan and payment of the fine had been filed late. “While Mr. Stevens and his client were speaking, the law department let me know that they filed their remedial plan or paid their fine late. So pursuant to the ordinance, they will be having a hearing,” the board’s legal representative told the panel. Mark Stevens acknowledged responsibility for the late filing and said the tardiness was an error by counsel.

Because the law department requested proceeding under the ordinance due to the late submission, the remedial-plan outcome at the meeting (no action) is superseded by the law department’s request for a formal suspension/revocation hearing under the city ordinance. The board did not vote to suspend or revoke the permit during the March 18 meeting; rather, law department action will trigger the next formal hearing process.

Board members and staff also offered resources to the business: members suggested the Metro Drug Coalition as a technical resource for employee training and community safety measures, and Officer Presley offered to work with the operator on trespass lists and patrol coordination to address loitering and related safety pressures that staff reported as a factor in some incidents.

The board emphasized the seriousness of repeated sales-to-minor citations. Legal counsel reminded the board that a third citation within a rolling two-year period would automatically move the licensee to a suspension-and-revocation hearing without an intermediate remedial-plan option.