Six Oak Park liquor license holders sold alcohol to underage customers during a one-day sting, state and local officials say.
“This was done by the state in conjunction with our local police,” said Oak Park Village Attorney Paul Stephanides.
Agents of the Illinois Liquor Control Commission, local law enforcement officials and underage participants recruited from area high schools and colleges conducted 11 underage compliance checks in Oak Park on April 8.
Of the 11 village liquor license holders checked, six failed:
* The Kinderhook Tap, 800 S. Oak Park Ave.
* Salerno’s Pizza & Pasta, 7124 W. Roosevelt Road
* Walgreens, 811 Madison St.
* New Rebozo, 1116 W. Madison St.
* La Bella Pasteria, 1103 South Boulevard
* Giordano’s of Oak Park, 1115 Chicago Ave.
Additionally, both The Kinderhook Tap and Giordano’s of Oak Park had each failed a previous compliance check, according to the Liquor Control Commission report released April 15.
Stephanides said that while Oak Park is a home rule municipality, for a business to legally sell alcohol they must have both an Oak Park liquor license as well as a state one. To this end, Liquor Control Commission compliance check teams randomly visit liquor stores, restaurants and bars in communities around the state to check for ongoing compliance with state laws mandating that no liquor is sold to persons under 21 years old and work with police to focus on communities with a high incidence of underage liquor sales.
“There’s a limit to what I can discuss about pending cases,” said Oak Park Trustee Adam Salzman, who also serves as the village’s liquor commissioner. “The fact that violations are being alleged or citations are being issued does not take away the businesses’ right to due process and have their citation reviewed or overturned.”
However, Salzman did go onto say that at the local level, the Village Board is looking into tightening the enforcement aspects of the village’s liquor ordinance as it moves to do a full review and update of the village code in the near future.
“A clarification could be set up in the village liquor ordinance because Oak Park is home rule,” said Salzman. “We don’t have to do that, but if we don’t then that state will step in. It makes sense for Oak Park to have its own enforcement.”
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As for the six businesses that failed the compliance check, they face a possible fine, suspension or even revocation of their liquor license when they appear before the Liquor Control Commission board for their respective hearings.
Alex V. Hernandez is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press.