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The Watchdogs: West Side liquor-license flap a study in clout "THE CHICAGO WAY"
Chicago - At last month’s grand opening of a shopping center anchored by a Pete’s Fresh Market grocery, Mayor Rahm Emanuel hailed the supermarket as an oasis in what had been a “food desert” on the West Side.
Besides food, Pete’s also sells liquor — even though the new store is next door to a church, the Greater Bethlehem Healing Temple, and state law bans liquor sales within 100 feet of churches or schools.
So how can Pete’s be selling beer, wine and spirits?
With a little help from influential friends including Sheriff Tom Dart's brother, Tim Dart who is a registered Illinois lobbyist and Ald. Edward M. Burke (14th), who’s gotten tens of thousands of dollars in campaign contributions from the grocer in the past two years.
