Vallejo planning commission approves beer and wine sales at neighborhood grocery

The Vallejo Planning Commission voted 5–0 to adopt a resolution finding the La Caiyam Goods project at 480 Redwood Street exempt from CEQA and to approve a major use permit allowing the store to sell beer and wine for off-site consumption.

Robbie Thacker, the planning division’s principal planner, told the commission the tenant space is about 1,000 square feet and the applicant proposes to limit alcohol displays to no more than 10% of the retail area. Thacker said the site is located in White Slough Zone 3 and that the application required a public-convenience-or-necessity (PCN) finding because the California Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control treats more than two off-sale retail licenses in the subject census tract as an overconcentration. “Currently, there are 12 existing licenses that are active within the census tract,” Thacker said, and staff nonetheless recommended the PCN finding after reviewing site context and operational controls.

Thacker said the Vallejo Police Department analyzed local crime data and “did not find any record of abnormally high crime rates associated with alcohol-related crimes compared to other areas of the city.” He also described standard local conditions proposed by staff, drawn from the Vallejo municipal code, that would apply to any new alcohol retailer (prohibiting loitering, litter requirements, signage, inspections and a condition limiting alcohol display to 10% of the floor area).

Commissioners pressed staff on several points before voting. They asked whether an ABC liquor license is separate from the local use permit and whether the use permit “runs with the land”; staff said the city’s use permit governs local land-use authorization while the ABC license is a state-issued entitlement that must be obtained or transferred separately. Commissioners also asked about a nearby homeless encampment; Thacker estimated that periodic encampments near White Slough were “several 100 feet away, if not more.”

Several commissioners raised public-notice and language-access concerns given the concentration of off-sale licenses in the tract. One commissioner suggested expanding notification beyond the standard 500-foot radius and translating notices into Spanish and Tagalog for the business area’s linguistic communities. Staff said property owners within 500 feet are required to be notified and that the department has broadened practice to notify tenants as well; staff noted translated notices would add cost and likely require third‑party translators but said the matter could be evaluated.

The commission discussed hours of alcohol sales. The municipal code condition presented to the commission allows alcohol sales from 8 a.m. to midnight; the applicant’s current business hours are roughly 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Commission members expressing concern about unduly restricting a small, new specialty business urged flexibility; staff clarified that the particular condition under consideration applies specifically to hours for alcohol sales rather than the store’s general business hours.

Chair Taylor moved to adopt the resolution finding the project exempt under CEQA (Class 1, existing facilities) and to approve the major use permit and PCN (PLN25-0151), and the motion was seconded. The commission voted unanimously in favor; the clerk recorded five ayes and the motion carried.

Because the local use permit authorizes alcohol sales at the site but does not itself substitute for an ABC license, the business must still obtain the appropriate state license from the Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control to begin alcohol sales. Conditions of approval include the 10% display limitation, compliance with the Vallejo municipal code special-use standards for alcohol retailers, and allowing city inspections as needed.

Separately, the commission continued a separate public hearing for a proposed pawnshop and Cash-for-Gold sign at 3716 Sonoma Boulevard to the July 6, 2026 meeting; there was no presentation or public comment on that item this evening.