Regardless of what issues were raised, including distance from churches and schools to crime, they were largely ignored and dismissed by the board.

A total of 29 new permit applications were filed by Walgreens for locations in Marion County; second in number only to Lake County.

Monday's hearing will likely to be more of the same, even though some city-county councilors have been discussing neighborhood objections to new permits with their constituents.

Project RAD met recently with City-County Councilman Ben Hunter (also a law enforcement officer and public safety director at Butler University). Hunter described alcohol permit saturation as a "livability" test for any city. He represents Irvington, where the community also opposes the construction of a new Walgreens in the area.

The next hearing for Walgreens permits is scheduled:

Monday, August 2

City-County Building

Room 260

9:30 AM

MCANA has filed a public records request on the following permits and locations:

DL49-23916         4054 East Southport Road

DL49-24024         2540 North High School Road

DL49-24026         2610 North High School Road

DL49-24031         3748 North High School Road

DL49­-24042         4221 South Emerson Avenue

"Fact Sheet: Alcohol Outlet Density," Alcohol Issues Committee, Capitol Neighborhood, Inc., Madison, Wisconsin.

"More Alcohol Sales Sites Mean More Neighborhood Violence, New Research Finds," Science Daily, February 22, 2010.

"How Alcohol Outlets Affect Neighborhood Violence," Kathryn Steward, Pacific Institute for Research and Evaluation.

"The relationship of alcohol outlet density to heavy and frequent drink and drinking-related problems among college students at eight universities," E.R. Weitzman, et al, Harvard School of Public Health, Health and Place, www.elsevier.com.

"What are the most effective and cost-effective interventions in alcohol control?" World Health Organization, February 2004.

City Aviation Commissioner Rosemarie Andolino says 24-hour-a day carts selling beer and wine would help O'Hare offer passengers the amenities they expect at a world-class airport.

Only restaurants with liquor licenses at the airports could apply to operate pushcarts, which would be located only beyond the security checkpoints at passenger terminals. The proposal would allow 12 pushcarts at O'Hare and five at Midway.

Mayor Gene Hexom told the commissioners that he had not received any "expressions of concern" about the change in municipal liquor laws.

"Now when we buy a beer, it's money that goes to the bottom line for restaurants like Mellow Mushroom," Oberholtzer told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. "This will make our businesses stronger."

By a two-to-one margin residents voted to end the city's prohibition on Sunday alcohol sales at restaurants.

The vote capped years of political infighting, legal battles and ill will that stemmed, in part, from a 2004 alcohol referendum, which prompted city leaders to allow alcohol to flow every day but Sunday.

Buzzed driving is drunk driving. Getting behind the wheel after even just one too many drinks can lead to disaster. Show your support to end buzzed driving by pledging to make good decisions by not driving under the influence of alcohol. Take the time to share the pledge with others and with your help, we can end buzzed driving.

The initiative is also on Facebook and Twitter.

Something to remind everyone about with each event that sells alcohol:

Here is a sample Tweet from the campaign: More than 1,000 young #people (0-18) die EACH YEAR in #alcohol related crashes. #buzzeddriving #dui #family #parents

What is impaired driving? Impaired driving can be defined as a reduction in the performance of critical driving tasks due to the effects of alcohol or other drugs. It is a serious crime that kills every 30 minutes.