Omaha council asks state to require TNA Grocery to reapply for liquor license after hearing on neighborhood violence

The Omaha City Council on an extended public record vote asked the Nebraska Liquor Control Commission to require TNA Grocery (3247 North 42nd Street) to file a formal long-form application for its retail liquor license, a step that would trigger a fuller state review and return the matter for local hearing. The council approved the resolution 6–1 after more than two hours of public testimony and council debate.

Councilmember Goodwin, who introduced the resolution, said the action is intended to review repeated incidents near the business rather than immediately close the store. "I do quite frankly do not accept that" violence in the neighborhood is inevitable, Goodwin said during her remarks and urged use of the council's review tools to protect residents.

City staff and the law committee presented a package of reports they said showed a rise in reports and calls for service linked to the address. Deputy City Attorney Ryan Wiesen clarified procedural points for the council: requesting a long-form application does not automatically revoke a license or shut the business down, but it requires the licensee to submit a new application to the Nebraska Liquor Control Commission for review and can lead to a subsequent local hearing depending on the commission's process.

The owner, Tariq Ali, testified that he cooperated with police and had upgraded security after incidents. "I was there when it happened," Ali said, describing his efforts to help investigators and to improve cameras and lighting at the site. His attorney, David Houghton, argued the shootings were collateral—incidents in a high-crime area that did not stem from the owner's conduct—and warned that forcing a business to close can increase neighborhood harms. Houghton added that long-form requests can carry constitutional implications for renewal rights and that the city should weigh consequences carefully.

Dozens of neighbors and business supporters spoke, many urging the council not to push the store out of the neighborhood because of the services it provides to residents. Supporters described grocery access, jobs and community outreach the business provides; opponents and Goodwin emphasized the scale of violent incidents reported near the site, referencing the law committee's compiled counts (the committee discussed roughly 58 incidents in 12 months, including assaults and shots fired).

Council members debated the threshold for using the long-form tool. Some said tavern reports and police data can reflect an operator's responsiveness, while others said tavern reports alone do not prove causation by the licensee. Several council members said they were torn but ultimately supported the motion to request a long-form review so the matter can be examined under the statutory process.

The council vote to request the long form was recorded as 6 in favor and 1 opposed. The action instructs the city to request that the state Liquor Control Commission require TNA Grocery to submit a new application; the store's current license remains valid while the process proceeds. The next steps are for the commission to require submission of a new application and for that application to undergo the commission's and then the local review process, which can include a full hearing with evidence and cross-examination if the matter proceeds to that stage.

The council did not revoke or suspend the license at the meeting; members said they expect further opportunity for community input if and when the commission sets a new application schedule or if the item returns to the council for a hearing.