MISSION VIEJO : Minimarket Allowed; Alcohol Will Not Be

A gas station seeking to install a minimarket didn’t ask for a beer and wine license, but the Planning Commission still made it clear on Monday that gas and alcohol don’t mix, at least in this city.

By unanimous vote of the commission, a Mobil station at 26811 Trabuco Road will be allowed to convert its service bays to stock prepackaged food and beverages.

But the commission took the opportunity to inform Carl Huy, who represented Mobil Oil Corp., that they would take a dim view of any future application to sell alcohol.

“It’s just not appropriate,” said Commissioner Sunnie Castner. “Why don’t we allow drive-through alcohol centers near freeways so people can just roll through and pick (liquor) up? I absolutely see no point in discussing this.”

Huy stopped short of saying that the station would never try to win a beer and wine license as he repeatedly told the commission that Mobil isn’t interested in selling alcohol at that location at this time.

Mobil will be allowed to remodel the inside of the station, replacing roll-up garage doors and service equipment with retail display racks and large picture windows.

In the south part of Mission Viejo, the owners of a Texaco station at Avery and Marguerite parkways recently indicated in a letter to the city that they might be interested in obtaining a beer and wine permit.

Noting that all five commissioners were recently appointed to their posts, Castner said it would be awhile before any gas station gets the opportunity to sell alcohol.

“These people can spend their money and file their applications, but there isn’t a single commissioner that approves of” alcohol sales at gas stations, she said. “And we’ll all be here a year from now.”