The El Paso County Board of County Commissioners voted 5–0 to grant a beer-and-wine license to Chipotle Mexican Grill (store #5609) for a new restaurant in El Paso County.

County staff and the applicant conducted an abbreviated hearing after the board agreed the application met state and local requirements. County attorney and clerk confirmed there was no relevant criminal history and that neighborhood survey procedures complied with guidelines for assessing needs and desires.

Chipotle field leader Priscilla Escobar described operational plans: the restaurant expects to open Jan. 30 and hire 30–40 employees; 10–13 staff members will handle alcohol sales and service. Escobar said the planned beer offerings are “Corona Light and Negra Modelo,” and described training systems (SpiceHub for online knowledge checks and Chip Links for written policies) that include manager validation of completions and knowledge checks. Escobar said staff are trained to identify intoxication, escalate to a manager and refuse service; violations of alcohol-service policy can lead to termination.

Carol Johnson of Liquor Pros presented the neighborhood survey results: petitioners made 590 attempts (84 business, 506 resident), collecting 115 signatures: 111 in support, 2 opposed and 2 no opinion. Applying state guideline rules could render one opposition invalid, which the presenter said would change the tally to 111 support and 1 opposition. The board accepted the survey recap into the backup material.

After commissioners asked questions about ID scanning, underage cashier policy and training, a motion to approve the license passed on a unanimous roll call. The applicant indicated the new restaurant will open shortly after licensing steps are complete.