Published: July 02, 2009 12:22 am      

Decision pending on beer barn

GREENVILLE — Hunt County Judge John Horn will decide by next week if a proposed beer barn in Northeast Greenville will be able to sell beer and wine as planned.

Horn told those attending Tuesday’s administrative hearing that he has five business days in which to announce his decision as to whether Buckaruz Beer Barn will open for business at 602 Forrester Street in the Ardis Heights area. Horn said he understood it was an emotional issue for the community, but that he would base his ruling on the legal specifics concerning granting the business a license to sell alcohol.

“I am going to do the best I can to rely on the substantive facts,” Horn said.

Those opposed to Buckaruz believe the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission (TABC) has indicated Horn would have the final say as to whether the business will receive a license to sell beer and wine.

Craig T. Weichmann spoke on behalf of many of those who live near the location, noting the Ardis Heights area is still experiencing the ramifications of the PCB contamination surrounding the former ESCO plant.

“We’ve already been victimized by soil tests and a major clean-up in our neighborhood and now this is going on,” Weichmann said.

Lloyd and Janet Webb, who own the store, explained they have met every requirement established by the City of Greenville concerning the property.

“I have a right to make a living,” Lloyd Webb said.

Lloyd Webb filed for his permit to operate before the Greenville City Council voted in April to prohibit those stores whose primary business is to sell beer and wine and which utilize a drive-through lane. Local voters approved the sales of beer and wine at Greenville stores in November.

But rules which the Council adopted following the election did not address concerns over stores which are designed to sell beer and wine only and were silent as to the sale of alcohol as a primary business. As Webb had applied for his permit during a time when there were no such regulations in place, the rules adopted by the Council did not apply to his operation.

Those who live near the location took their opposition to the TABC, arguing Buckaruz would increase traffic along Forrester and Fannin Streets, as well as increase noise and the potential for criminal activity in the neighborhood. The protesters state there are TABC codes which rule that if the business is found to be against the peace and dignity of an area, then the county judge has the final ruling as to whether a beer and wine can be issued.

Weichmann was the first of 10 people to speak to Horn in opposition to the business, noting he was a consultant for major restaurant chains nationwide, with extensive experience working with the TABC. Weichmann, who lives in Ardis Heights, said Horn would be given the authority to deny the alcohol license to Buckaruz if he found the business posed a threat to the general welfare, safety, health, peace, morals or sense of decency of the community.

“I think these are all very valid points, or else they would not have written them,” Weichmann said. He also asked whether a Phase 1 environmental study had been done of the property, the site where a gas station once stood, to see if the station’s tanks are still in the ground.

“This is a question the residents of this community would like verified,” Weichmann said.

Other arguments involved where the store’s delivery trucks would park, as Forrester Street (FM 499) is a state highway and parking is illegal on the side of the road, as well as the potential for increased traffic, noise and crime.

“If this is approved, we will take pictures of any violations,” he said, adding the residents hoped significant fines would be levied. “This is a neighborhood. Please keep it that way sir.”

Lloyd Webb said the real estate agent who sold him the property investigated back to 1964 and found there were no gas tanks on the site, and that the property had received a clean bill of health from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) as to any contamination. Webb also noted the City of Greenville did not require him to obtain a Phase One environmental assessment before he received his certificate of occupancy.

“I’m sorry if anybody’s mad,” Webb said. “I don’t mean to step on anybody’s toes, but I have a right to make a living.”

Janet Webb said they complied with all of the city’s instructions and the business had already been through public hearings before the Planning and Zoning Commission and City Council.

“I just wish they had come to the City Council meetings like we did, to keep it from getting this far,” she said.

Horn said he would investigate the information regarding gas tanks, city requirements, EPA testing and more before he reached a decision.

“It will take me a few days to put that together,” Horn said.