The Barona Resort & Casino can keep the limited liquor license that its neighbors have fought for more than six years, an appeals court has ruled.

The San Diego-based 4th District Court of Appeal said the state Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control acted properly in issuing the license. Neighbors and county officials claimed that the administrative law judge who approved the license in 2007 should not have heard the case.

They said the judge was not qualified to hear the appeal because he had recommended approval of the license in 2004 — a decision overturned in court on procedural grounds.

Neighbors are concerned that drinking at the casino could lead to crashes on winding Wildcat Canyon Road. Barona does not sell alcohol at its main casino floor, but it is available in restaurants and some other areas.