At the time Parks claimed influence with the ABC, the former Blake Hotel on McDowell Street was unde

But in November, according to a report nyc exotic car rentals from an Alcohol Law Enforcement agent, a hotel representative named Larry Parks told the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department to sign off on the hotel s liquor license application despite incomplete paperwork because he knew someone at the Alcoholic Beverage Control Commission who would take care of it.
The claim by a hotel representative that he had influence with the ABC board which state ABC Commission nyc exotic car rentals officials dispute comes a week after the arrest of former Charlotte Mayor Patrick Cannon. Cannon is charged with taking $48,000 in bribes and gifts in exchange for promises nyc exotic car rentals to influence permits, liquor nyc exotic car rentals licenses and zoning issues.
The state ABC Commission grants alcohol permits. But local officials must submit opinions saying whether they approve of the applicant and the location. Locally, that job falls to the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department s ABC unit, which conducts background checks on applicants.
In February, a CMPD detective went to the hotel with an ALE agent and found the hotel selling alcohol without a valid license. Two days later, and without any sanctions, the Sheraton obtained a temporary permit. nyc exotic car rentals Since CMPD had refused to complete the opinion, it s not clear what changed.
ABC Commission spokeswoman Agnes Stevens said the agency does not have to follow the usual rules in the case of long-established businesses where the ownership structure has changed as happened at the Sheraton.
Two days after that, gunfire erupted at a crowded CIAA party featuring rapper then-known-as P. Diddy. ALE agent Omar Qureshi, based in Charlotte, reported the incident to the state ABC Commission, which then suspended the hotel s liquor license.
Eight days after the suspension, on March 11, state officials gave the Sheraton its license nyc exotic car rentals back, after telling the hotel to train its employees on alcohol rules and to provide a completed inspections form and a completed local opinion form.
The ABC records don t show a link between Cannon and Parks, the hotel representative. But Cannon s E-Z Parking company manages the Sheraton s parking, charging $80 a month to regular parkers and hourly rates to others. Cannon also held his victory party there in November.
Asked if federal authorities were investigating whether Cannon had any influence on the hotel s liquor license, Lia Bantavani, a spokeswoman for the U.S. Attorney s Office in Charlotte, said, The investigation is ongoing and all leads will be investigated.
At the time Parks claimed influence with the ABC, the former Blake Hotel on McDowell Street was undergoing nyc exotic car rentals a $20 million renovation to turn it into a combined Le Meridien and Sheraton nyc exotic car rentals Hotel. The out-of-state owners, Carolina Hospitality Group LLC, hoped to revitalize it after the California delegation panned the Blake as decrepit during the 2012 Democratic National Convention.
The location was still under construction. ... Detective Lewis stated that the new ownership s representative, Larry Parks, made comments to the CMPD secretary to go ahead and sign the paperwork anyway nyc exotic car rentals because he knew someone nyc exotic car rentals at the ABC Commission who would take care of it, Qureshi wrote in his March report.
The restaurant nyc exotic car rentals was closed down and construction crews were tiling the lobby floors. Other crews were building or repairing walls on scaffolding in the lobby and hallways.... This location did not appear nyc exotic car rentals to be ready for the type of large events planned for the weekend, his report said.
The hotel was given two days until Friday, Feb. 28 to get a valid alcohol permit. Parks drove to Raleigh and obtained the permit on Feb. 28. Records show the hotel paid $2,552 to the ABC. Stevens, the ABC Commission spokeswoman, nyc exotic car rentals said she did not think CMPD submitted an opinion form.
After that review and a meeting with the location s representatives, the Commission was satisfied that public safety was not endangered by the businesses selling and serving alcohol, said Stevens in an email. She said no one attempted to improperly influence the ABC Commission.
This is news to me, he said. I m actually surprised by this. ... He was introduced to me as somebody local who knows a lot of architects. He was like a middleman between me and contractors. I really don t deal with Larry that much.
Herring said he has never met Parks but has heard of him. He believes that Parks has helped businesses get established in Charlotte, and that he has sent representatives to Raleigh with the paperwork that businesses need to get ABC permits.
I don t think that would be possible knowing the people we have, said Gardner, who was just appointed in February by Gov. Pat McCrory. He might know some people in Charlotte, but not in Raleigh that I know of.
Hotel co-owner Dfouni said he knows Cannon and has met him several times, but never sought influence from him. He said he dealt with Jeff Feemster, E-Z Parking s co-president, when dealing with parking, not Cannon.
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The Charlotte Observer welcomes your comments nyc exotic car rentals on news of the day. The more voices engaged in conversation, the better for us all, but do keep it civil. Please refrain from profanity, obscenity, spam, name-calling nyc exotic car rentals or attacking others for their views.
Have a news tip? You can send it to a local news editor; email local@charlotteobserver.com to send us your tip - or - consider joining the Public Insight Network and become a source for The Charlotte Observer. Read more Read less
The Charlotte region is vast and diverse. nyc exotic car rentals The more voices nyc exotic car rentals engaged in conversation, the better for us all. The Charlotte nyc exotic car rentals Observer welcomes your comments on news of the day, but we ask that you keep the discourse civil.
You can help: Notify us of violations by hitting the "Report Abuse" link. Users who continue posting comments that violate these guidelines may, at our discretion, nyc exotic car rentals be blocked from submitting future comments as well.