FOUR ESTABLISHMENTS within Barangay Loyola Heights will not be receiving liquor permit renewals for 2018 unless they fulfill certain requirements, according to the Quezon City Liquor Licensing and Regulatory Board (LLRB).
According to Myrna Zacarias, Executive Officer of the LLRB, the board wrote a letter to Jeepney Bistro, Tortuga, Lan Kwai (registered as New South Gen Restos Inc.), and NINYO Fusion informing them that their permits will not be renewed in 2018 unless they are able to secure a barangay clearance, a locational clearance that the serving of liquor is allowable in their address, and a letter from the Brgy. Loyola Heights Homeowners’ Association interposing no objection of serving of liquor.
The four bars along Esteban Abada Street received the letter on December 5. Their liquor licenses for 2017 are effective until December 31.
Nonrenewal of liquor licenses, however, will not mean closure for these establishments, but only prohibition to sell alcohol.
The LLRB’s actions were in response to a joint resolution passed by Barangay Loyola Heights officials and stakeholders calling for a ban to sell and serve alcohol within the barangay.
Based on the Zoning 2000 Map of Quezon City, establishments that may possibly be able to continue liquor operations include Walrus, Exile, and Taco Joe’s, since they are along Katipunan Avenue, which is a major commercial zone (C-2).
On the other hand, establishments along Xavierville Avenue such as Xavier Point and Papu’s and Mamu’s may be prohibited from permit renewal since they are within a medium-density residential zone (R-2). However, Zacarias said they were not given nonrenewal notices because they do not have permits from the LLRB in the first place, and are therefore serving liquor illegally.
Zacarias added that the LLRB has no power to close these establishments, although they can recommend their closure to the Business Permits and Licensing Office.
The official list of establishments that will still be allowed to sell and serve alcohol has not been released to the Ateneo Campus Safety and Mobility Office (CSMO) or barangay as of writing.
CSMO Director Marcelino Mendoza stated that once the list is available, the CSMO will cross-check if these establishments have permits and will coordinate with the barangay and stakeholders on enforcing alcohol regulations.
Mendoza said that the CSMO will support the closure of establishments that are “matitigas na ulo (hard-headed)” when it comes to selling and serving alcohol without a permit.
Joint resolution
The joint resolution titled “A Joint Resolution of Loyola Heights Stakeholders Urging the Quezon City Government to Prohibit the Selling and Serving of Liquor or any Alcoholic Beverages within the Territorial Jurisdiction of Barangay Loyola Heights” was filed by various stakeholders of Loyola Heights, including CSMO Director Mendoza.
The resolution was filed as a response to a bar raid incident of Oplan Bakal in three establishments along Esteban Abada Street. It was passed to the Quezon City (QC) government on September 28.
Loyola Heights Barangay Chairman Caesar Marquez stated that the resolution was “the last resort to a longtime problem, [which is] drinking establishments skirting alcohol regulations.” According to Marquez, there were several cases wherein the barangay did not allow establishments to sell and serve liquor since they are in residential zones, but they would still be given liquor permits by the LLRB.
Marquez also stated that it would be better if there was no selling and serving of alcohol in Loyola Heights, given that it is the “gateway to the educational hub of Quezon City,” as both Ateneo and Miriam College are located in the barangay.
In a letter addressed to Quezon City Mayor Herbert Bautista, Marquez said that the stakeholders expect that the alcohol ban would curb petty crimes in the barangay, because alcohol intoxication “has been noted to be a major cause” of these crimes.
The resolution was rejected by Quezon City Vice Mayor Joy Belmonte on October 22, saying she “could not pass an ordinance prohibiting the sale of alcoholic drinks in one village,” and that the city council can only “approve measures covering the whole city.”
Marquez clarified that their intention was for the city government to provide the barangay with measures and/or assist them with their vision of community safety, not to pass the burden to them.
Meanwhile, Mendoza intends to work with the barangay and the Quezon City Police in monitoring establishments that serve liquor by assessing if they comply with city ordinances.
“[I]n tandem with the Barangay Chairman, and of course the stakeholders, we’ll try to coordinate with QC [local government] and the police to strictly enforce the regulations.”
Total ban ‘not tenable’
Aside from the Office of the Vice Mayor, the resolution was also sent to the LLRB and the Business Permits and Licensing Office. The LLRB wrote a letter addressed to Mayor Bautista, stating that the office agrees that no liquor permit shall be issued to any establishment located in residential areas of Barangay Loyola Heights.
“In view of the representations made by the Loyola Heights Stakeholders as herein cited, this Office agree [sic] that No Liquor Permit shall be issued to any establishment located in residential areas of Barangay Loyola Heights […] No sale or serving of liquor in their establishment shall be allowed effective January 1, 2018,” read LLRB Chairman Alberto Galarpe’s letter.
However, the LLRB’s letter admitted that the request to wholly ban the selling and serving of alcohol in Loyola Heights is deemed “not tenable” unless provisions allowing the selling and serving alcohol in certain commercial areas of the barangay are amended by the Quezon City Council.
Statement from Walrus
Co-owner of Walrus Katipunan Zachary Riskin pointed out that their establishment was not skirting any drinking regulations.
“We are in a commercial zone and we don’t fall within the no alcohol selling zone implemented near schools. Walrus is operating completely within the law,” Riskin said.
Braulio De Castro, also co-owner of Walrus, stated that not every bar is guilty of skirting alcohol regulations. With regards to Oplan Bakal, de Castro believed that revoking bars’ liquor permits had no relation to firearms.
He also expressed that LLRB’s plan to revoke bars’ permits would negatively impact their business, but that they would find ways to adapt to the circumstances.
“I’ve never seen alcohol as the main thing we sell here. We sell hospitality, more than a brand, more than a lifestyle. We pride ourselves in taking care of people who walk through our door. As long as we can still do that, our business will still proceed,” de Castro stated.
Atenean views
According to Sanggunian President Ia Marañon, the barangay should regulate consumption of alcohol instead of banning it. “I think that any efforts to ban alcohol would actually worsen the issue,” she said.
She stated that even if the reason for banning alcohol is to curb harmful incidents, the ban would give leeway to situations that cannot be easily mediated, such as when students drink in their homes or other private spaces.
“Legalize, and regulate consumption by implementing curfew hours, or accrediting establishments to sell alcohol,” she said.
Meanwhile, diplomacy and international relations junior Jessica Ordoñez stated that banning something does not completely stop people from consuming it.
“If they revoke bars’ alcohol permits, are they even bars anymore? Drinking in bars is such a huge part of college culture and college socializing and networking,” she said.
Additionally, legal management junior Daniella Santos stated that the LLRB had the public’s best interest in mind in revoking bars’ liquor permits, especially since most of the bars are situated near residential areas.
“However, I think the board could look into allowing a partial ban on the selling of alcohol instead rather than revoking their permits altogether,” she said.
EDITOR’S NOTE: The GUIDON reached out to the owners of Lan Kwai and Jeepney Bistro, but were unavailable for comment as of writing.
