toledoblade.com --

Toledo City Council was engulfed yesterday in contentious debate, including allegations of "backroom" meetings, about proposed changes to a Toledo law that licenses convenience stores.

Councilman Joe McNamara took umbrage yesterday that council President Mark Sobczak and Councilman George Sarantou have held three meetings with carryout owners who have sued the city over the law.

"It was extremely irresponsible for members of council to meet with the store owners without the law department," said Mr. McNamara, who used the "backroom" term.

He said Mr. Sobczak has created a dangerous precedent of allowing those who sue the city to discuss deals with council outside the courtroom.

"It is in litigation now. It needs to be decided in the courts," Mr. McNamara added.

Yesterday's agenda-review meeting became so heated that at one point Councilman Michael Ashford, who said his district is heavily affected by carryouts, stormed out of council chambers while Mr. Sobczak attempted to explain the reason he had met with the store owners.

Mr. Sobczak said he objected to characterizing the meetings as secretive, and said it was prudent to attempt a compromise.

"To that end, the meetings were held with the full knowledge of the administration of the city," he said.

In June, U.S. District Judge James Carr granted a temporary restraining order against the law that was later extended to the end of August, said Jim Bishop, an attorney for the city of Toledo.

Mr. Sobczak said, "There were indications from the court that there was room to compromise."

An alliance of Toledo convenience store owners, called the Midwest Retailers Association, decided in April to challenge the city law that requires such businesses to be licensed at a cost of $250 a year, install security cameras, and turn over surveillance video to police. City Council on Dec. 11 approved, by a 9-2 vote, the requirement for the stores to be licensed.

City officials promoted the law as a tool to curb crime, loitering, littering, and underage liquor sales.

The law applies to stores smaller than 5,000 square feet selling food and beverages. Some merchants claim a requirement to hand over surveillance video to police within eight hours constitutes an unreasonable search and seizure.

Among the changes proposed would be a reduction in the number of hours surveillance cameras must be operated and the time owners would have to maintain the video and elimination of the need for color video.

Police would also not be able to make periodic inspections of the video.

Councilman Lindsay Webb suggested repealing the entire controversial law and assigning a task force to examine how the city should proceed with the licensing of carryouts.

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