New York City Mayor Eric Adams has started to push a new idea to limit how many liquor stores can operate in certain neighborhoods. The goal is to reduce alcohol-related harm.
The proposal has hundreds of liquor store owners on edge, who say the plan could come at too high a cost.
A new Department of Health report shows New York City is home to 25,000 businesses licensed to sell alcohol, with almost 1,500 categorized as liquor stores.
“It’s especially concerning to see how the density of liquor stores in a neighborhood is linked to heavy drinking,” Adams said in a statement.
Proximity matters, some health experts say
Some public health experts say the connection is real, and proximity does matter.
“Those are proven public health interventions, decreasing access makes it harder to use whatever it is,” Dr. Nzinga Harrison of Eleanor Health said. “People do not realize how detrimental even low-level alcohol use is to a person’s health.”
Health officials warn consuming too much alcohol has been linked to at least seven types of cancers.
“Alcohol is a human carcinogen. It’s a class one carcinogen, basically the same category as asbestos and tobacco,” Dr. Pete Sulack said.
And it’s not just stores the report suggests cutting back on, but also adding restrictions to alcohol advertisements.
“I would be very concerned about job loss, empty storefronts”
Michael Towne Wine and Spirits has been serving Brooklyn Heights residents for nearly a century, weathering economic downturns and the COVID pandemic. The owner says the new push from Adams could threaten its future, which is already looking dim.
“Marijuana has affected it. Different lifestyle choices,” owner Michael Correra said. “I would be very concerned about job loss, empty storefronts.”
Adams and the DOH are looking to cut the number of liquors stores in communities with a high density of what the city is calling alcohol-related harm, specifically in communities across Manhattan, as well as in Downtown and Northern Brooklyn.
Correra says there’s already enough oversight.
“I believe we are business that is greatly regulated and controlled,” Correra said.
Not everyone agrees that cutting back liquor stores will make a difference.
“It seems like an odd thing to be concerned with right now, with all the other serious issues that New York City is dealing with,” Brooklyn Heights resident Martha Rowan said.
“Maybe it’s an easy target because it’s a vice for some people. But I think people are also responsible enough to hopefully make their own decisions,” resident Sam Friedman said.
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