Mason City council votes to deny liquor license renewals for three stores

MASON CITY — The City Council in Mason City last night unanimously voted to deny liquor license applications for three convenience stores owned by the same operator.

Police Chief Jeff Brinkley said in a memo to the council that the renewals should be denied for the three Malik’s stores at 1465 4th Southeast, 418 South Federal, and 1303 4th Southwest, owned by Abdul Awan. The third store, also known as “The Spot”, is currently the only one of the three locations open for retail sales.

Brinkley says the reason for the denial request is not about underage alcohol sales, but it’s repeated issues with inspections, not filing for building permits, as well as the selling of numerous illegal CBD and THC products at The Spot that were seized by police.  “These are more regulatory in nature and more non-compliance based complaints, and actually, judgments. The fire department has a judgment in district court for one of these. I think the idea here is that we’ve tried to encourage Mr. Awan repeatedly at DRC meetings to view the city and other regulatory authorities as a partner in doing business, and trying to engage compliance with regulatory and those kinds of things, and we just have continued to kind of be up against a wall with him in getting those things done.”

Councilman Paul Adams says the repeated disregard towards rules and regulations is a red flag.  “It’s the pattern of non-compliance is my biggest issue here. There’s a whole list which I just read and there’s more detail in the packet here that anybody can read. That’s the alarming issue for me, so I support your recommendation chief on this, thank you.”

Awan told the council he’s tried to correct the issues. “There were a bunch of issues, but we addressed most of them. I’m just trying to get another, second chance and make things right. We already work with the fire department and the city and we are trying to correct all the issues.”

You can see a copy of Brinkley’s memo to the council detailing the violations at the bottom of this story. 

The liquor licenses at the three locations expire later this spring.

Awan can appeal the council’s decision to the Iowa Alcoholic Beverages Division and have his case heard by an administrative law judge. 

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Memorandum

To:             Aaron Burnett, City Administrator

From:     Jeff Brinkley, Police Chief

Date:          February 25, 2025

RE:            Recommendation to Deny Liquor License Renewal for Malik’s #1, Malik’s #2, and Malik’s #3

Recommendation:

Deny the liquor license application renewals for the following: Malik’s #1 located at 1465 4^th Street SE; Malik’s #2 located at 418 South Federal Avenue; and Malik’s #3 located at 1303 4^th Street SW.

Review:

Currently, liquor licenses are in effect for all three of these locations. Only one location, Malik’s 3, also locally known as “The Spot,” is open for retail sales. Malik’s #2 was open briefly before being damaged by a vehicle. Malik’s #1 has not opened for retail sales yet. The licenses expire on April 3, 2025, for The Spot; April 4, 2025 for Malik’s #1; and May 21, 2025, for Malik’s #2.

Last year, the Mason City Fire Department and the Mason City Police Department completed liquor license inspection forms prior to opening for the owner, Abdul Awan. Mr. Awan agreed to contact MCFD and MCPD for final inspections prior to opening. He later opened The Spot and Malik’s #2 without contacting MCFD or MCPD for final inspection at either location.

Over the past several months, there have been several regulatory issues at The Spot that have involved MCFD, Neighborhood Services, CG Public Health, the Iowa Department of Natural Resources, and MCPD. The following is a summary of those ongoing issues:

• Mason City Fire Department
  • Awan applied for the liquor license to open his store(s) before the store(s) were ready to open for business. MCFD signed off on the liquor license requests and moved the paperwork forward for city council approval. Mr. Awan was contacted by phone and informed that before opening he needed to call MCFD to complete an inspection once he had the store(s) setup and before he opens for business. Mr. Awan stated he would call us. While driving by, it was noticed that Malik’s #3 -The Spot – at 1303 4^th Street SW was open for business and had not yet received a fire inspection for the liquor license. The inspection was completed after the fact.

• Awan completed some construction work at The Spot without obtaining a building permit. He was advised that he needed to pull a building permit before he does any work in the future. Mr. Awan then applied for a building permit after being found doing construction work with no permit. Awan has not called for a final inspection to close out the building permit.

• Malik’s #2 is located at 418 South Federal After opening the store for a short period prior to a car running into the store and the store being subsequently closed, the owner left the gas pumps turned on providing unattended fuel pumping without proper safety devices in place. The owner was verbally informed of the unattended gas pumping code with the opening of Malik’s #3, prior to the opening of Malik’s #2 store. The owner, Mr. Awan, declined a hard copy of the code. It was explained to him that the code carried to the other locations also. Mr. Awan was cited for the infraction. It went to court with the City of Mason City awarded judgement and a fine being assessed to Mr. Awan.

• Development Services
  • At both Malik’s #1 and #2, work has taken place without required building permits. Signs have been erected, also without the required building and zoning permits, that do not conform to Title 12-20 of the Zoning City staff has been working with their sign contractor and permit applications have been submitted, but as of now the signs already erected remain out of conformance and will need to be replaced with signs that comply with local ordinances.
  • At Malik’s #3, we have received complaints about the bright white lights surrounding the interior of each While we have not been able to determine if this lighting conforms to the City of Mason City’s Dark Skies Requirements, the lighting is obtrusive and visibly bright. Signs that do not comply with Title 12-20 of the Zoning Ordinance have also been erected at this location without the required permits.

• CG Public Health (records attached)
  • July 16, 2024 – CG Public Health completed a Food Establishment Inspection Report for Malik’s #3.
  • November 7, 2024 – CG Public Health sent a letter to Malik’s #3 to inform Awan that by selling the product Kratom, his food license was invalidated.
  • Febru<:1.rx.J2, 2925 – CG Public Health notes= outlining a complaint from a concerned citizen about items for sale in the store: Kratom, delta-8,-THC vapes, and delta-9-THC edibles.
  • Referral made to MCPD and follow-up scheduled with Iowa Health and Human Services, Bureau of Cannabis Regulation for later inspection.

• Iowa Health and Human Services (February 21, 2025 letter attached)
  • An inspection was completed at Malik’s #3 (The Spot) on January 30, 2025, by Bureau of Cannabis Regulation personnel. The following violations were identified:
    • The Spot did not have a valid consumable hemp retail
    • Multiple vaporizable CBD and THC products were noted for sale at The Spot during the inspection and seized by MCPD.
    • Products containing synthetic cannabinoids, notably Delta-8 THC, were observed for sale.
    • Products containing hundreds of milligrams of THC were available for sale at The Spot upon inspection. These products may exceed statutory limits.
    • The Spot’s sale of consumable hemp products without the required warning labeling is not in compliance with requirements of Iowa Administrative Code 641-156.4(1).

There is a pattern and practice in the business operation at Malik’s #1, Malik’s #2, and Malik’s #3 that demonstrates a disregard for compliance with oversight and regulatory authorities. I would ask that you deny these liquor license renewals as a result of this ongoing deliberate noncompliance that creates a public health risk for community members.

Budget Impact:

There is no budget impact of this action.

Council Action Requested:

Deny the liquor license application renewals for the following: Malik’s #1 located at 1465 4^th Street SE; Malik’s #2 located at 418 South Federal Avenue; and Malik’s #3 located at 1303 4^th Street SW.

            Jeff Brinkley