City law applies to more than just convenience stores

This just in from Scott Ciolek, the attorney for the Midwest Retailers Association, regarding the city of Toledo's response to their lawsuit over the 'convenience store licensing law.'

Today, the City of Toledo responded to the Midwest Retailers Association request for a preliminary injunction on the Toledo "Convenience Store" Ordinance. In its response, the City of Toledo explains to the "Convenience Store" Ordinance actually governs all Food and Beverage retail stores smaller than 5000 sq ft. of floor space and that only a portion of the establishments governed by the law have received their applications. The vast majority of these establishment are unaware of their impending obligations.

City of Toledo wrote... (page 8)

....the Ordinance defines "convenience stores" as a retail seller "of food and beverages for home consumption***with a floor area less than 5000 sq. ft." This definition is not vague. Midwest, however, assumes that this definition applies to some undefined subset of businesses that meet the definition of convenience store. Midwest bases its erroneous assumption on the fact that the City sent written notices and applications to less than all of the businesses to which the definition would apply. Midwest [wrongfully] concludes that only the businesses that received the written notice and application are subject to the Ordinance...

By the city's definition, a "Convenience Store" would include all restaurants, health-food stores, gas stations, fast-food shops, coffee shops, tea shops, state liquor stores, ice cream parlors, etc [less than 5000sq ft. of floor space]. This means that the owners of each business falling within the scope of the definition would have to purchase, install, and maintain high resolution video camera systems, record themselves at work, and provide the tapes to any city official upon request without a warrant. Moreover these owners would have to take on additional liabilities as outlined in the ordinance.

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The city's response.