THOUSAND OAKS : Planners Vote to Let Pool Hall Sell Beer

The Thousand Oaks Planning Commission has decided to let the city’s first billiard hall sell beer only if people under 21 years old are not allowed in the establishment after 10 p.m.

The commission voted unanimously Monday to approve an application by Rack-n-Roll Billiards on Thousand Oaks Boulevard to sell beer during the pool hall’s normal hours of 11 a.m. to 2 a.m.

But the approval came with the condition that no one under 21 be allowed inside the establishment after 10 p.m. Billiard hall employees would have to make sure that all minors leave the premises at 10 p.m.

Commissioner Andrew Fox said he was concerned that employees would not be able to prevent minors from drinking beer bought by adults.

Enforcing state laws against drinking by minors would be especially difficult when the billiard hall became crowded, Fox said.

Clinton Airey, one of Rack-n-Roll’s owners, said the pool hall gets most of its customers after 9 p.m.

Fox had originally proposed that no minors be allowed in Rack-n-Roll at any time.

He said he didn’t see a difference between a pool hall that serves beer and a bar. “I’d like you to convince me how this is not going to turn into a bar,” Fox told Airey.

But Commissioner Forrest Frields said Fox’s proposal went too far.

“That cuts the tail off the cat right behind the ears,” Frields said.

“That pretty much eliminates a large section of the clientele.”

Many of Rack-n-Roll’s billiard customers are under 21, according to Airey.

However, in response to Fox’s suggestion, Frields proposed that minors not be allowed in Rack-n-Roll after 10 p.m. Fox called the proposal “a good compromise.”