LONG BEACH : Neighbors Fight Plan to Sell Alcohol at Pyramid

Some neighbors of Cal State Long Beach are fighting the university’s plans to sell beer and wine at the new sports arena, the Pyramid.

Residents who live near the Pyramid have expressed concern that rowdy fans will disrupt their neighborhoods if the university starts selling alcohol at the arena.

“We don’t want the mixture of beer and large crowds,” said resident H. Ronald Voelker, who lives on College Circle. “There’ll be a lot of noise and a lot of pollution around the area.”

But university officials say the license, combined with a strong campus police presence, would allow them to control alcohol consumption during sports events at the arena.

“When people do not have the opportunity to buy beer and wine at the facility, they bring it with them. They smuggle it in,” said Gary Adams, general manager of 49er Shops, which would sell the alcohol. “We’re interested in making sure that it’s done right.”

The university’s petition to sell alcohol at the facility is on hold while officials of the state Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control review neighbors’ complaints. A public hearing might be scheduled after investigators make a recommendation, liquor control investigator Kathie Jones said.

The university’s pub, the Nugget, has served beer and wine on campus since 1975. Residents said the student pub has not posed a problem to neighbors because it is near the center of campus, while the Pyramid, which seats nearly 4,500 people, is at the northern border.