VAN NUYS : Cap Urged for Pawn and Liquor Stores

An end to the proliferation of pawnshops and liquor outlets in Van Nuys is one of the key requests the Van Nuys Homeowners Assn. will ask from new city leaders.

“I think Van Nuys has more than its share of pawnshops and it has more than its share of liquor outlets,” said Don Schultz, president of the Van Nuys group, founded in 1975. “It’s time to stop issuing those licenses because of the tremendous amount of crime in neighborhoods that are asking for help.”

Schultz contends that pawnshops can attract a criminal element seeking to sell stolen goods, while the abundance of liquor outlets makes it difficult to police the selling of alcohol to minors.

Citing a recent police report, Schultz said there are 14 pawnshops in Van Nuys, more than any other community in the Valley. Northridge, Tarzana, Studio City and Sherman Oaks host one pawnshop apiece, he said.

According to police, less than one-half of 1% of the goods in pawnshops are stolen.

Schultz said his group will scrutinize Mayor Richard Riordan’s appointments for new city planning commissioners--who vote on conditional use permits for liquor outlets--and for the Police Commission, which screens pawnshop applicants.

Finally, Schultz said the homeowners association will continue to lobby to transfer responsibility for pawnshops from the Police Commission to the City Planning Department in order to force public hearings on each application.

The effort was begun with Councilman Marvin Braude and may also be taken up with new Councilwoman Laura Chick, Schultz said.

“Chick has a portion of west Van Nuys and we want to get her involved in some of the issues out there,” he said.