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Beer license denied for former site of La Botana

Beer license denied for former site of La Botana Beer license denied for former site of La Botana

By Kevin O’Brien

The new renters of a bar space in downtown Abbotsford were unable to convince city council members last week to let them reopen the establishment after a liquor license for the former proprietor was denied last year following multiple alcohol-related citations.

Hunter Oeming and Marta Pinto Collazo, who filled out an application for a Class B beer license, introduced themselves to the council at the start of last Wednesday’s meeting and said they planned on opening a new establishment, Bar Latino, in the former home of La Botana, located at 206 N. First St.

The property is still owned by the former proprietors, but Oeming said the goal is for Pinto Collazo to establish a business there as a renter and then eventually purchase the property.

Oeming and Pinto Collazo said they would work to improve the reputation of the establishment by working with local police and hiring security once they could afford to do so.

“We’re well aware of the drug use problem that was there before,” he said. “It’s something we don’t want.”

See LICENSE DENIED/ Page 5 License denied

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Oeming said they want to be able to reopen a place for people in the area to go to on the weekends, particularly Hispanics.

Ald. Jeremiah Zeiset, however, said the local police chief recommended not issuing a new alcohol license for the establishment if it still had the same owners.

Ald. Mason Rachu noted that the city has continually had issues with the bar in the past, even after the ownership changed hands.

“I’m not saying that’s your fault,” he told Oeming and Pinto Collazo. “I’m just saying that’s the past experience.”

The council ultimately voted to deny a Class B beer license to Bar Latino, which was also denied a license to sell tobacco products.

Last June, council members refused to renew the liquor license for La Botana after several citations were issued to the bar and its patrons for multiple incidents in the first half of 2024. Five of those incidents resulted in the bar receiving demerit points, which negatively impacts the bar’s ability to have its license renewed.

“When they decided to not renew the license, it was for that premises, which is where it gets sticky now,” city administrator Josh Soyk explained to Oeming and Pinto Collazo.

Pinto Collazo said many of the people who caused problems at La Botana in the past are either in jail or no longer living in the area. She also said they would not be rehiring employees who had issues following the rules. “So, there’s going to be a lot of changes,” she said.

The past violations included a Feb. 17 incident in which a patron left the bar with an open container of alcohol, resulting in both the patron and the bar being cited. Another incident involved an April 17 fight at the bar, which resulted in more demerit points even though the brawl happened outside the establishment, according to thenowner Ivone Vasquez. La Botana received an additional 75 demerit points following a May 26 incident in which 20 to 25 people were found consuming alcohol in the bar at 2:50 a.m., nearly an hour after bars are required to close. The owners were cited for being open after hours, and later that morning, police returned to the bar in response to a fight in progress, which resulted in one man being arrested for assaulting a police officer.

Officers told the council last summer that the people involved in the fights were all heavily intoxicated, raising concerns about the bar overserving its patrons. Serving someone alcohol when they are already drunk is grounds for more demerit points.

“We’ve seen the ownership or the rental agreements change in the past, and the problems didn’t go away,” Ald. Roger Weideman said. “I think it’s just a little bit too early for me to feel comfortable.”

Other business

■ ■ Alds. Rachu and Sarah Diedrich, members of the Colby-Abbotsford Police Commission, told the rest of the council that a titanium tooth implant for K-9 Hemi was less expensive than originally thought, $4,200 instead of $5,000. They also said the police department is looking at getting a therapy dog, which would accompany school resource officer Patrick Leichtnam and help those dealing with trauma. Rachu said the dog would be donated to the department and so would the cost of training.

Rachu also announced that the CAPD received a $100,000 anonymous donation, with $18,000 going into the K-9 fund.

■ ■ DPW Craig Stuttgen said the city is working on designs for a road extension off of Opportunity Drive in the western industrial park. He asked the council to start thinking about names for the new north-south road.

“It took four meetings to come up with Opportunity Drive. Let’s try and beat that record,” he joked.

■ ■ The council voted not to pay $3,753 in annual membership dues to the Clark County Economic Development Corporation. When asked about the benefits of being a member, Soyk said the CCEDC will contact him about businesses looking for land to build on, but they’re usually seeking large parcels of land that are not available within the city.

Stuttgen said the city has always been successful promoting its own land for development.

“Every deal we’ve made in town we’ve made ourselves,” he said.

DENIED - The old La Botana bar will likely remain closed after a new beer license was denied by the Abbotsford City Council last week.

STAFF PHOTO/SAMANTHA YOCIUS

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