Baltimore City businesses may soon have to obtain a license to operate late-night under a bill before lawmakers.
Councilman Bill Henry, District 4, has proposed a new license requirement for businesses that operate between midnight and 6 a.m. Henry said the legislation establishes a permitting process modeled off the city’s liquor license system.
Late-night licenses would be reviewed annually, and if at any point a sufficient number of neighbors — or a city council member — challenges a license, a board would hold a public hearing, he said.
“Really, the ability to stay open all night should not be considered a land right,” Henry said. “It should be a privilege. The local community should have a say over it and it should be something that is reviewed periodically.”
Henry said his proposal was inspired by an Exxon gas station near the Alameda in North Baltimore where “unsavory elements” congregate in the evening. The manager of the gas station has since agreed to add security, but the issue remains city-wide, Henry said.
Lawmakers expect the proposal — and a similar one specific to the Mount Vernon community sponsored by District 11 Councilman William Cole — to draw heavy opposition from retailers.
Jeff Zellmer, legislative director for the Maryland Retailers Association, said his organization has opposed similar bills.
Many small grocery stores and convenience stores — not to mention big-name franchises like Dunkin’ Donuts and 7-Eleven — rely on late-night hours to net a profit, Zellmer said.
“You cut back the hours, you cut back the number of dollars coming in,” Zellmer said. “The retail business is hard enough as it is. I keep saying that the Santa Claus ringing the bell from the Salvation Army outside our doors is making more money than the retailer inside.”
Cole’s proposal, motivated by a 7-11 that wants to move into the Mount Vernon neighborhood and operate 24 hours a day, requires convenience stores there to close between 11 p.m. and 5 a.m.
When the owner of the building at issue rejected the local community association’s offer to purchase the site, Cole said he took action.
“They want to be 24 hours and I’m trying to prevent that,” Cole said. “The Mount Vernon Belvedere Association felt so strongly about this that they raised $450,000 in private funds and loans to buy the building just to keep it from going in there.”
Officials at 7-Eleven said 24-hour operation is the cornerstone of their business concept and is now what their customers expect. The franchise has been operating stores 24 hours since 1963.
In the U.S., 10 million people are awake at 3 a.m. and 7 million are working, 7-Eleven officials said.
“Especially in the current economical environment, we believe it to be bad public policy,” said corporate spokeswoman Margaret Chabris. “We plan to work with other 24-hour businesses that would be impacted by this ordinance to persuade that the proposed ordinance not be passed.”
Henry, whose proposal will come before the city’s planning commission Jan. 15, said he would be willing to entertain a “mass exemption” for franchises and chains that sign a binding agreement with local communities. The legislation has been scheduled for a public hearing before a city council subcommittee Jan. 21.
A hearing on Cole’s proposal has not been scheduled.
