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The Extended Central Core AIA

August 30, 2006, the Washington State Liquor Control Board approved Seattle's two new Alcohol Impact Areas. The LCB restricted sale of 29 types of beer and wine products within a 5.71 sq mile area of Seattle's Central Core and a .78 sq mile North AIA in the University District. Nov. 1, 2006, new AIAs came into effect. Before, the Central Core AIA was voluntary; now, it's mandatory.

Seattle's North, Central Core, and Pioneer Square AIAs

Seattle's AIAs include Pioneer Square, downtown, Capitol Hill, Chinatown/ID, the CD, and U-District. Since the Central Core AIA happened, there are more transient drunks on Beacon Hill. In Chinatown, they go to stores in SODO and return with a beverage of choice. The Washington State Liquor Control Board can create new AIAs, in Seattle through the City Council.

In April, 2008, the City Council received an update on the effectiveness of the AIA. As manufacturers of the specific beverages have been rebranding them and stocking them within the AIAs, the City is now considering modifying the AIAs to cover types of beverages instead of specific brands.

Want To Help?

Download this form and keep track of your empties.

AIA Beverage List - Word        AIA Beverage List - pdf

Send your tallies to: Beacon Hill AIA with AIA in the subject line and the location of your cleanup.

Beverages Covered by AIA & Alcohol %

Beside alcohol content, these products differ from most other beer and wine. They're cheap with a high sugar content: they're sweet. For chronic street inebriates, the sugar kills hunger. They rush and crash.

4000 other brands of beer are available in Washington State.

Beer and Malt Products

• Bull Ice 8%

• Busch Ice 5.9%

• Colt 45 Ice 6.1%

• Colt 45 Malt Liquor 6.4 %

• Hurricane Ice Malt Liquor 7.5%

• Keystone Ice 5.9%

• Lucky Ice Ale Premium 6.1%

• Mickey's Iced Brewed Ale 5.8%

• Mickey's Malt Liquor 5.6%

• Miller High Life Ice 5.9%

• Milwaukee's Best Ice 5.9%

• Milwaukee's Best Premium Ice Beer 5.9%

• Natural Ice 5.6%

• Old Milwaukee Ice 5.9%

• Olde English "800" 7.5%

• Pabst Ice 4.8%

• Rainier Ale 7.3%

• Red Bull Malt Liquor 5.5%

• Red Dog 4.9% 

• Schmidt Ice 5.8%

• Special 800 Reserve 6.0%

• St. Ide's Liquor and Special Brews 7.3%

• Steel Reserve (Five different types – 8.1% for four types, 5.5% for one type)

Wine Products

• Cisco 18.0%

• Gino's Premium Blend 14.0%

• MD 20/20 13.5%

• Night Train Express 17.0%

• Richard's Wild Irish Rose 13.9%

• Thunderbird 18.0%

Good Neighbor Agreements

In 1999, BAN and Wright Runstad Co. hosted a meeting at PacMed for businesses owners and Beacon Hill residents. Businesses refused to enter into a voluntary Good Neighbor Agreement. They could not agree among themselves to sign an agreement.

The Beacon Hill Chamber of Commerce negotiated a Good Neighborhood Agreement with the new owner of the Shell station on Beacon Ave. and 15th to remove a phone booth and restrict beverages.

John McGoodwin, South Precinct liaison for the office of the Seattle City Attorney, is working with community groups, businesses, and individual neighbors on Good Neighbor Agreements with other merchants.

Recent Media

Important Public Documents

Ban on 29 cheap, potent beverages falls flat, report says,
Bob Young, Seattle Times, April 28, 2008

Results mixed on ban of some drinks,
Council updated on city law to curb street drunks
Angela Galloway, Seattle PI, April 28, 2008

State liquor board OKs expanding alcohol-impact zones in Seattle, Jim Brunner, Seattle Times, Aug. 31, 2006

Sale of strong alcohol banned in certain Seattle neighborhoods,
Angela Galloway, Seattle P-I, Aug. 30, 2006

Liquor board bans 29 fortified drinks in Seattle "impact areas",
Jim Brunner, Seattle Times, Aug. 31, 2006

Booze ban, Seattle Times, Aug. 23, 2006

Stores consider cheap-beer ban costly, 
Jim Brunner, Seattle Times, Aug. 23, 2006

Public Drinking: Too soon to know,
Seattle P-I Editorial Board, Aug. 6, 2006

Mixed results in alcohol impact area,
Kery Murakami, Seattle P-I, July 27, 2006

Booze ban fails, Mike Seely, Seattle Weekly, June 30, 2006

Liquor Board to hear from public about alcohol ban,
Jon Naito, Seattle P-I, June 29, 2006

Booze ban has fans in Tacoma,
Jim Brunner, Seattle Times, June 29, 2006

What Booze Ban?,
Philip Dawdy, Seattle Weekly, May 3, 2006

Seattle takes step on "alcohol impact area", 
Hector Castro, Seattle P-I, Dec. 13, 2005

Don't Drink: City moves to expand alcohol impact area far beyond Pioneer Square, Amy Jenniges, The Stranger, Dec. 11, 2003

Dry Drunks, Jeanne Ryan and Adam Holdorf, Real Change,
June 27, 2002

Booze ban: Seattle will prohibit fortified wine and malt liquor in Pioneer Square, Rick Anderson, Seattle Weekly, Dec. 26, 2001

Officials urge limit on sale of liquor in problem areas,
Seattle P-I, Jan. 5, 1999

Alcohol Impact Areas,
Washington State Liquor Control Board -
includes background information on Seattle decision

Metropolitan Improvement District (MID) Monitoring AIA, Dept. of Neighborhoods, Vol. 17, No. 1, January 2007,
page 2

Request for Mandatory AIA Enforcement, Dept. of Neighborhoods, May 16, 2006

Presentation of Report to Washington State Liquor Control Board (WSLCB), City of Seattle Presentation to WSLCB, July 27, 2006. (2.3 MB - NOTE: This presentation hits the highlights of the longer download document above.)

Report on Voluntary Compliance Efforts in the Central Core and North Alcohol Impact Areas and a Request for Mandatory Restrictions, Dept. of Neighborhoods, May 16, 2006 (8 MB pdf)

Seattle formally requests two AIA designations, June 29, 2006. City Council news release.

Alcohol Impact Area, CM Richard Conlin, Making It Work, Vol. VII, Issue 12, Dec. 29, 2005

Alcohol Impact Areas, CM Nick Licata, Urban Politics #208, Dec. 13, 2005

Progress for Broadway, Mayor Greg Nickels, Nickels Newsletter, Dec. 2004

Alcohol Impact Areas, CM David Della, Seattle Perspective, Vol. I, Issue 2, June 30, 2004

Council Bill Number 114726, Ordinance Number 121487: An ordinance creating two alcohol impact areas and requiring a report to Council regarding voluntary efforts to reduce chronic public inebriation in such areas, June 1, 2004. Signed by Mayor Greg Nickels, June 8, 2004;
includes links to detailed maps of both areas

Designating Alcohol Impact Areas, CM Tom Rasmussen, Point of View, Issue No. 2, May 2004

 Council committee approves expanded alcohol impact areas, May 18, 2004. City Council news release.