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Navajo County board debates Love's Joseph City liquor application; motion to recommend denial fails in divided discussion
Summary
After a public hearing with several residents citing school proximity and public-safety concerns, the Board considered whether to recommend denial of a beer-and-wine store license at Love's Travel Stop in Joseph City; the board debated community data and petitions and, per the transcript, the motion to decline the county's recommendation was announced as denied.
Supervisor Amanda Silverhorn presented a beer-and-wine store application for Love's Travel Stop No. 278, located at 4703 Main Street in Joseph City, saying the sheriff's office, treasurer, health department and planning and development had responded that the application met their requirements and that the 21-day posting was complete.
Multiple Joseph City residents and school-affiliated speakers urged the board to recommend denial. Carolyn Bushman provided a petition and said Love's did not previously submit a completed liquor application and that the community had strongly opposed earlier efforts. Jean Varney cited vehicle-count and incident data, telling the board Exit 277 carries about 3,225 vehicles per day and describing a search of local archives that found incidents linked to alcohol; she warned of likely increased violent crime if on-premises alcohol sales expand. Dan and Andrew Bushman described repeated encounters with intoxicated individuals near school and community sites and expressed concerns about response times from law enforcement.
Dillard Atru, general manager at Love's Travel Center, told the board Love's has not had violations at Arizona locations in 15 years, described company training on underage and intoxicated-customer prevention, and said the store is beyond the state's 300-yard distance standard from school activity as he understood it.
Board members emphasized that the county's role is advisory to the Arizona Department of Liquor Licenses and Control and discussed what objective data the liquor board would consider. Supervisor Jason Whiting moved that the board decline to recommend approval and to include community documentation with a denial package to the state board. The motion was seconded and the chair called for the vote; in the transcript the chair later stated, "I see that that motion was denied." The transcript does not include a clear roll-call tally.
The board asked staff to ensure petitioners know how to file formal protests with the state liquor board and to include the community petitions and supporting data if the board chose to pursue a denial recommendation.
What comes next: the Board's action here is advisory; the final decision lies with the Arizona Department of Liquor Licenses and Control. The transcript shows substantial community opposition focused on school proximity, parking/parking-lot consumption risk, and public-safety response times.
