More than 110 letters have been received in protest of an application by the Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians to expand a liquor license at its Chumash Casino Resort, according to a spokesperson for the state agency responsible for alcohol licensing and compliance.

Although no total count of correspondence to the Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control was available, 115 protest letters have been submitted, said Juliet Lac of the ABC staff.

Thursday was the extended deadline for public comments on the application because a letter from the applicant to those living within 500 feet of the Santa Ynez casino premises was mailed out June 9, according to ABC.

After an earlier June 29 deadline, 87 protest letters and two support letters had been tallied, ABC said.

The Chumash application, filed in late May, is a request for a “premises to premises transfer” to expand the “type 47” general restaurant license for the Willows Restaurant in the casino to include the adjacent Creekside Buffet and the hotel next door.

The license would also allow alcohol to be served with meals in the casino’s showroom during special-event dinners.

No sales, service or consumption of alcoholic beverages would be allowed on the gaming floor or in the

Chumash Café, Tribal Chairman Vincent Armenta has said.

The expanded license is not meant to add a bar-style location to the casino, but rather to add alcohol service with sit-down-style meals served there, according to tribal officials.

The general concerns of protest letter writers focused on crime and traffic safety, Lac said.

In 2009, 154 arrests or citations occurred at the casino property — five more than in 2008, according to a Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Department “total offenses” report provided to the county Board of Supervisors. The numbers in the report are based on citations and arrest reports only.

Of last year’s totals, 20 were alcohol-related crimes. All but one of those, a drunken-driving offense, were for public intoxication.

Also in 2009, the sheriff reported that there were 61 crimes related to drugs, 23 to theft, 22 trespassing, four forgery and identity theft, six battery cases, three probation violations, 11 arrests on outstanding warrants, and 24 miscellaneous crimes.

The numbers are tied to the dedicated work of casino security officers and reflect a tiny fraction of the casino’s more than 2 million annual visitors, according to the head of Chumash security.

However, those opposed to the expanded license believe the sheriff’s data paint a larger portrait of rampant crime that trickles outside the casino onto nearby highways and roads.

In a letter to Sheriff Bill Brown, the citizens group Preservation of Los Olivos (POLO) has asked for a full investigation into “significant alcohol and other criminal related activity” at the casino.

ABC will review each letter to determine whether the protest is valid and if its premise is related to community concerns, officials for the agency said.

Grounds for protest can include proximity to a school, church, hospital, playground or residence, or a location in a high-crime area, for example.

Conditions — special restrictions — can also be placed on a license to limit alcohol sales hours, for example. Conditions sometimes eliminate the need to deny a license or may cause a protest to be withdrawn, according to the ABC.

A public hearing would be held if any issues about the application cannot be resolved by the applicant and protesters through conditions being placed on the license, ABC said.

Based on the large number of protests, the application process is expected to take longer than the usual three months and go to hearing, Lac said.

Review of a protested application that requires a hearing by an administrative judge and involves subsequent appeals from either the proponent or opponents can take several months, according to ABC.

Both the Board of Supervisors and the sheriff have said they would separately protest the application.

In June, tribal officials announced they had reached an agreement with the sheriff on a set of 14 license conditions.

The conditions cover where and when alcohol could be sold, for example, and a requirement that the premises be open to inspection by county deputies at all times alcohol is for sale.

Spokespersons for the Chumash and POLO did not respond to a requests for comment Friday.

Posted in Local on Saturday, July 10, 2010 12:00 am