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Sitka Assembly approves new restaurant license, liquor renewal and retail marijuana permit
Summary
On a 6–0 vote the Assembly renewed a liquor license, forwarded a new restaurant/eating-place license to AMCO without objection and approved a retail marijuana store conditional use and license to the Marijuana Control Board after staff explained distance and conditional-use constraints.
The Assembly took three licensing actions from the consent agenda.
Liquor license renewal: the Assembly approved a liquor license renewal application for Alejandro Vasquez by voice vote, recorded 6–0. Clerk Sarah read the roll call for the motion and no public protest was entered.
Restaurant/eating-place license (REPL): Members discussed the state AMCO process that granted Sitka three additional REPLs and explained that the third REPL is held for 30 days to allow competing applications. The Assembly examined whether any grounds existed to protest and discussed a specific applicant’s temporary non-operational status and contingency paperwork. After deliberation the Assembly moved and forwarded the Campfire Kitchen (331 Lincoln St.) application to the Alcoholic Beverage Control Board without objection.
Retail marijuana store: The Assembly considered a conditional use permit and related AMCO distance standards for a proposed retail marijuana store (the joint at 327 Seward St., Suite 7). Planning staff measured shortest pedestrian (door-to-door) distances to sensitive uses and found the closest sensitive use (Church of the Nazarene) about 582 feet away; the application also disclaimed alcohol consumption in an auditorium that had been a community concern. The Planning Commission had approved the conditional use permit without the drive-through component. The Assembly approved forwarding the application and findings to the Marijuana Control Board 6–0.
Assembly members emphasized procedural limits — the city can protest on clearly articulated public-interest grounds, but AMCO and state rules govern licensing and protests must be based on facts rather than preferences. Members also noted mechanisms to revisit approvals if code- or nuisance-related problems arise after operations begin.
