Kansas City Small Biz Begs Mayor & Council To Keep Tiny Booze Bottles

A quick petition for reprieve ahead of the showdown vote in just a few moments . . . 

Vote NO – This Ordinance Targets Small Businesses, Not Crime 

Mayor Quinton Lucas and Councilwoman Melissa Robinson,

I am writing on behalf of myself and have included 70+ small business owners across Kansas City who are actively engaged in this discussion and share serious concerns about the proposed ordinance restricting single-serve alcohol sales.

Many of these business owners along with those from news outlets are included on this email and will be reviewing your response closely.

The concern is simple:

If the city is willing to target one group of legal, licensed businesses today — who’s next tomorrow?

These are not bad actors.
These are business owners who:

- Follow the rules set by the city
- Pay taxes
- Employ local residents
- Invest in neighborhoods

Yet this ordinance sends a clear message that even when businesses do everything right, they can still be penalized for issues they did not create.

Based on your recent public posts, this proposal is being framed around:

- Store density in certain areas
- Product mix (what businesses sell)
- Quality of life concerns

But this ordinance does not address behavior.

- It does not stop crime.
- It does not stop public drinking.
- It does not address repeat offenders.

It simply shifts responsibility away from enforcement and onto business owners.

As has been pointed out across the community:

- “Thinking this ordinance will change people is the dumbest thing. It will just change how they get what they want.”
- “This is just punishing businesses for the city’s failure to hold criminals responsible.”
- “With everything Kansas City is dealing with… this is where leadership is choosing to focus?”

You have also highlighted the number of stores within certain areas and questioned the concentration. But that raises a fundamental issue:

👉 The City approved those licenses
👉 The City allowed that concentration
👉 The City collected taxes from those businesses for years

Now those same businesses are being blamed.

If there is a concern about density, that is a planning and licensing issue — not something that should be corrected by restricting legal products after the fact.

Additionally, the issues being cited — litter, public drinking, disorder — are not unique to one corridor or neighborhood. These are citywide challenges tied to lack of enforcement, repeat offenders, and broader environmental issues.

Trash, cigarette waste, packaging, and debris are visible across Kansas City — not just in the areas being targeted.

So, the question many of us are asking is:
--Why are compliant businesses being penalized for the actions of individuals who ignore the law and the environment?

And there is another major contradiction that cannot be ignored:
--Kansas City is preparing for the World Cup, where you as a council have allowed bars and restaurants to serve alcohol up to 23 hours a day.

So, on one hand: 
👉 The city is expanding access to alcohol for major events and tourism
But on the other: 
👉 You are restricting how local residents can purchase legal products in their own neighborhoods

If this is truly about health, safety, or consumption — those positions directly conflict.

This ordinance does not solve the problem — it avoids it.

Instead, it:

- Hurts small businesses
- Reduces jobs
- Creates uneven rules across the city
- Sets a precedent that any business could be targeted next

Kansas City’s small business community is paying attention.

We are asking for leadership that:

- Enforces existing laws and harsh punishments for illegal activity no matter how big or small the violation is 
- Holds individuals accountable for their own actions
- Works with businesses — not against them
- Not policy that punishes those who are trying to do the right thing.

I will also be attaching community comments from residents from media outlets online who have shared their disapproval of this proposed ordinance and business owners across Kansas City who share these concerns. Their voices deserve to be part of this decision.

We respectfully urge you to vote NO or kill discussions on this ordinance and focus on real solutions — not symbolic ones.

Kansas City deserves better.

Sincerely,
Matt Alexiou
Including 70+ Kansas City Small Business Owners
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