Newark evening star and Newark advertiser. [volume] (Newark, N.J.) 1909-1916, 1913-03-29
GAM GRANT kinney
SALOON LICENSE
Not in Church Limit. Decision
of City Counsel Nugent.
Award Delayed.

Decision in the application of Ar
thur E. Straube for a saloon license
for the new Kinney building was
again postponed by the Excise Board
at its meeting yesterday afternoon.
1t will be taken UP by the board at
its next meeting, two weeks hence,
when Commissioner John Nieder, who
was unable to be present yesterday
owing to illness, will be on hand
In suggesting a postponement of
action Commissioner Smith contend
ed that the question was of such vast
Importance that the entire board
should shoulder the responsibility.
For that reason. he. said, no action
should be taken until the full men,
bership was present.
Objection to the granting of the
license was made by the Rev. Lewis
y. Hills, representing the First Press
byterian Church of which he is as
eistant pastor, and Edward S. Black.
counsel for property owners in the
near vicinity. Both contended that
the board was compelled by law to
reject the application under tho
statute restricting the granting of IL
eenses to places within 200 feet or
church property.
The board, however, in the opinion
Of city Counsel Nugent is vested with
fun legal authority to grant the IL
cense He holds that the portion or
the property which is within 200 feet
of the contemplated saloon is in the
actual possession of the National
State Bank. He says in part:
while the extreme northerly point
of land formerly in the possession or
the First Presbyterian Church may
be a few feet within the 200-foot limit
prescribed by law from the extreme
southerly end of the building in which
the license is sought, that there exists
a lease from the church corporation
to the National State Bank which
makes the National State Bank the
actual possessor of all that part of
the property which might be consid-
cred otherwise to be within the linz
itation above referred to, and that
the property In question is subject TO
taxation and therefore not within the
class Of church property which Is
contemplated to come within the pur-
view of the statute in question.
II also find that the property in
question, upon which ~ license is
sought, was, at the time of the en-
actment of the law in question, occu-
pied as a saloon and continued so to
be occupied until recently, when 1t
became necessary for the encumbrant
then to vacate because of the neces-
Rity for the construction of the pre-
ent new building upon the site In
question,
"This, in my opinion, would exclude
the property in question from being
within the class of places designated
by the statute as new places, and,
therefore, for that reason also, would
not be subject to the classification as
q new place, as contemplated by the
new statute. j am, therefore, of the
opinion that there is no valid legal
reason why this application should
not be granted and that your honor
able body has full legal authority to
grant the same, and I so advise"
Paul r. Lefferts. representing Ar
| thur e. Straube, the applicant. urged
Immediate action, inasmuch as the
matter had been pending practically
|since February 81. The application
was originally made on February Z
land refused. Two weeks later per-
mission was granted to renew the APP
|plication and the decision of the
board has been pending since.