SALT LAKE CITY — Fellowship Hall has opened its doors at its Sugar House building to people recovering from addictions since 1991.
"We don’t just do meetings here; we hang out here. This is where we stay sober," said David Vasquez, the operations manager of Fellowship Hall.
So he was surprised when he learned who would be moving next door, replacing some abandoned buildings on the other side of an alley that Fellowship Hall uses to stage outdoor concerts. Utah's Department of Alcoholic Beverage Services has acquired the land for a new state-run liquor store.
"Why would they do something like that? I mean, we’ve been here since 1991. We’ve been established as a Fellowship Hall since 1991. People know what we do. Why would the state want to put a liquor store behind it?" Vasquez said in an interview Wednesday with FOX 13 News.
The DABS confirmed it is planning to build a new, single-story liquor store on land at 815 East and 2100 South. It will replace the aging and overcrowded Sugar House store on Highland Drive.
"That store has outgrown itself. It’s outdated," said DABS Communications Director Michelle Schmitt. "We need a new, modern store that meets that community, that serves that community. As you know, as anybody who might drive through Sugar House can see, there’s a lot of development happening in that area. Not a lot of areas of land to relocate a state liquor store."
The Sugar House store, known as "Store #2" is the second state-run liquor store to be built in Utah. It is a popular store with limited parking. But Vasquez said he is perplexed at the decision to build a new DABS store next door to an addiction recovery center that has been there for decades.
"I just kind of think there’s many, many other places around Sugar House they could do that. Right behind a recovery house is probably not the best place, in my opinion," he said.
Vasquez told FOX 13 News he does not have the same concerns about nearby bars. Fellowship Hall hosts several meetings a day for people with alcohol and narcotics addictions and has a café that sells food. The nonprofit group also hosts alcohol-free concerts and other community events in its parking lot.
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Schmitt said the agency understands concerns about the new Sugar House store's location and is willing to meet with Vasquez and others in the community to address any issues. The land was just selected as a DABS store location and no construction has begun, nor have any building plans been drafted.
"The DABS, we’re really sensitive to anyone who has concerns about the location of a state liquor store and how that might impact the community. It is really a priority of our department to be good community partners," she said.
Vasquez said he was once an alcoholic who would wait for the liquor store to open so he could purchase a bottle to stop himself from shaking. While worried the proximity to Fellowship Hall could negatively impact some people in recovery, he was also hoping there would be a silver lining.
"Maybe the blessing of that is I might find another David sitting out there at eight o’clock in the morning, bring them in for a cup of coffee and help them," he said. "That could be a blessing and a curse."
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