Agenda Date: 1/14/2026
Subject: Change of Location for Dirt Coffee Bar
Title
Motion to approve an application granting a change of location permit for a Beer & Wine licensed premise for ROOTS COLORADO INC. d/b/a Dirt Coffee Bar
Body
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Presented By: |
Wendy J. Shea-Tamag, Deputy City Clerk |
ISSUE
Whether to support the applicant’s application to change location of their Beer & Wine liquor license from 5767 S. Rapp St. to 2506 W. Alamo Ave.
INTRODUCTION/HISTORY AND FACTS
On February 7, 2018, the Littleton Licensing Authority approved an application for a new Beer & Wine liquor license for Roots Colorado Inc., d/b/a Dirt Coffee at the Rapp Street location, a rental property. The licensee operated at the South Rapp Street location for six (6) years and, when their lease was set to expire, they purchased a permanent location on W. Alamo Avenue, less than 900 feet from their licensed location. Pursuant to Colorado Liquor Rules 47-312(B) “When a licensee is required by lease, lease renewal, condemnation, or reconstruction to move its licensed premises to a new address that is located within the same shopping center, campus, fairground, or similar retail center, the local or state licensing authority may, at its discretion, waive the neighborhood needs and desires assessment requirements should it determine that the new location remains within the same neighborhood as the old location.” A Change of Location is handled by issuance of a permit vs a license as the entity has already been licensed and is merely asking to move that licensed premise within the same jurisdiction, in this case within the same neighborhood.
Regulation 47-312 (B) states “Each such application shall state the reason for such change, and in case of a retail license, shall be supported by evidence that the proposed change will not conflict with the desires of the adult inhabitants and the reasonable requirements of the neighborhood in the vicinity of the new location.” The reason for this change is that the licensee has secured and purchased a permanent location to replace the previously rented location. As the State Regulation is vague regarding what constitutes “evidence that the proposed change will not conflict with the desires of the adult inhabitants…”, and as a Change of Location permit is not something staff processes on a regular basis, city staff reached out to the Colorado Department of Revenue Liquor Enforcement Division for guidance.
Taking into consideration whether approval of this application to permit a move would conflict with the desires of the adult inhabitants or whether the reasonable requirements of the adult inhabitants of the neighborhood/vicinity are now being met, and information gleaned from the conversation with the Colorado Department of Revenue Liquor Enforcement Division, staff finds the following to be true:
• While an application for a Change of Location permit is handled similarly to that of an application for a new license, i.e., a public hearing is required, there is some latitude for the local licensing authority to mitigate Needs & Desires; and
• The original Needs & Desires results submitted as part of the new license application was approved by the Littleton Licensing Authority in 2018; and
• This request to change location within the same area, as evidenced by the attached map, shows that the same inhabitants currently served will continue to be served; and
• Since the initial approval of a new liquor license for Dirt Coffee was approved in 2018, there have been five (5) other licenses approved in the same geographic downtown area based on Needs & Desires results submitted; and
• Upon consultation with, and subsequent direction from, the Colorado Department of Revenue Liquor Enforcement Division, as this move is less than 1,000 feet from the originally licensed location, there is no need, in the opinion of the Division, to conduct a new Needs & Desires process.
If approved, the licensee shall, within sixty (60) days of approval, purchase and store alcoholic beverages at their new location. The licensee shall no longer conduct the manufacture or sale of alcohol beverages at the former location. A local licensing commission may, at its discretion, extend the time to change the location of the licensed premises, for good cause shown. However, no extension that is beyond twelve (12) months from the original date of approval shall be granted
CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS
• Notice of the hearing was posted on the premises on December 30, 2025.
• The notice of hearing was printed in the Littleton Independent on January 1, 2026.
• Staff finds no cause to require a new Needs & Desires process for this request to be approved for a Change of Location Permit which will allow them to operate under their already-issued license, however the Licensing Commission may direct staff and the applicant to conduct a new Needs & Desires process if deemed necessary.
PROPOSED MOTION:
Proposed Motion
I move to approve the application for a change of location permit for Roots Colorado Inc., d/b/a Dirt Coffee Bar from 6757 S. Rapp St. to 2506 W. Alamo Ave contingent on approval from the Colorado Department of Revenue Liquor Enforcement Division.
OR
I move to continue this hearing for an application for a change of location permit for Roots Colorado Inc., d/b/a Dirt Coffee Bar to February 11, 2026, to allow for the applicant to conduct a new needs and desires assessment.