Three recent appearances by Partner R. Bruce Evans before the San Diego County Planning Commission paved the way for SSJ clients to bring business and employment opportunities to Southern California. Evans represented Fresh & Easy Neighborhood Markets (owned by British retailer Tesco), which sought to open two markets in the unincorporated communities of Spring Valley and Fallbrook, and Longs Drugs which sought to build in the rural community of Alpine. In each case, the County initially denied the discretionary approval for the sale of alcoholic beverages based largely on written opposition from the San Diego Sheriff’s Department. After SSJ was retained to handle these appeals, Evans, working with Associate Attorney Julia Sullivan, was able to negotiate with the Sheriff’s Department to craft operating conditions tailored to address the specific law enforcement concerns for each location. As a result, the Sheriff’s Department withdrew its opposition. Despite opposition from the County’s Planning Staff at the public hearing, the Planning Commission granted all three appeals overturning the decisions by the Planning Department. Evans says, “these appeals were successful because we were able to create consensus between stakeholders, community leaders and local law enforcement officials to address their legitimate concerns related to the sale of alcoholic beverages.”
