Arlington businesses face police checks over the next few months to whether they are following laws related to alcohol sales.

A new release issued Feb. 16 by Arlington police says:

"Alcohol consumption by young people has a profound effect on our community. Alcohol use by teens is related to traffic crashes, crime, poor performance in school and a number of other behaviors having an adverse impact on the quality of life in Arlington.

"No single approach will entirely solve the problem; however, each approach, implemented effectively, and used in concert with all the other strategies currently being implemented by the Arlington Youth Health & Safety Coalition may help to reduce the scope of the problem.

"Consequently, the Arlington Police Department has trained certain officers in the procedures used to conduct lawful alcohol compliance checks of establishments licensed to serve alcohol. It is our intent to conduct such compliance checks during the next few months.

"This will not be a one-time initiative, and we will periodically conduct compliance checks to ensure the safety of our children and to ensure that our licensed establishments are in compliance with the law.

"The Arlington Police Department wishes to thank the community for their continued support and for all the efforts of citizens to help ensure the safety of Arlington children."