Full Notification

Rohnert Park Department of Public Safety Director Tim Mattos announced today that the Rohnert Park Department of Public Safety has been awarded a $50,000 grant from the California Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC) to battle alcohol-related crime. This grant was written as a joint program with the City of Cotati, CA and Sonoma State University. Under this multi-agency grant, the Rohnert Park Department of Public Safety will act as the administrator and will work closely with the other two agencies to effectuate the terms of the grant agreement.

The grant is one of several awarded in California to local law enforcement agencies through ABC’s Alcohol Policing Partnership Program. The grant funding is specifically targeted to mitigate alcohol-related nuisances and crimes, target problem premises with special emphasis on alcohol-related nuisance abatement and reduce youth access to alcohol from licenses premises on the Cities of Rohnert Park, Cotati as well as on the Sonoma State University Campus.

The grants strengthen local law enforcement efforts by combining the efforts of local police officers and ABC agents. ABC agents have expertise in alcoholic beverage laws and can help communities reduce alcohol-related problems.

"The program improves the quality of life in neighborhoods," said ABC Director Jacob Appelsmith. "We’ve seen a real difference in the communities where the grant program resources have been invested."

The Alcohol Policing Partnership Program was created in 1995 to strengthen partnerships between ABC and local law enforcement agencies. The program is designed to put bad operators out of business, keep alcohol away from minors and bring penalties such as fines, suspensions or revocations against businesses that violate the law.

The funds will be used to reduce the number of alcoholic beverage sales to minors, obviously intoxicated patrons, illegal solicitations of alcohol, and other criminal activities such as the sale and possession of illegal drugs.

The APP Program has distributed over $20 million to local law enforcement to combat alcohol-related crime.