Oak Creek Café alcohol sales within school boundary
After a lengthy discussion over why the Oak Creek Cafe was permitted to sell alcohol within a school boundary buffer zone, the Dripping Springs Planning & Zoning Commission voted against recommending permission to continue sales (3-2). Commissioners Martin and Hubbard voted in favor of the variance allowing for alcohol, while Commissioners James, Strong and Garza voted against it. The denial of the variance request will be recommended to the Dripping Springs City Council.
About a year ago, last June, the owner of the small family restaurant, Penny Henderson, had indicated the location of the cafe as outside the 300 ft. school buffer zone on the permit application. She received a 2-year TABC alcohol permit on 6/28/2018 and an 8.5-month alcohol sales permit from the City on 9/13/2018. The distance measurement was later discovered to be in error.
“If they have been doing this for a year, why are we kicking the cat now?” Commissioner Kim Hubbard said.
City Planning Director Jason Lutz answered Hubbard’s question and said, “ Since the Oak Creek Cafe violated the boundary, we need to approve a variance allowing them to keep selling alcohol, or stop it. The TABC permit is for just beer and wine.”
Lutz went on to say that a letter was sent to the Walnut Springs Elementary School, and notices went out on this issue, but no one responded. The City Staff recommended supporting the requested variance with various conditions, such as: 1) no advertising of alcohol sales on site, 2) hours of operation be limited so as not to allow drinking after the dinner hour, 3) no public display or storage of alcohol outside the building.
P&Z Chair Mim James confirmed with City Attorney Laura Mueller that there was no distinction with the boundary code on the type of alcohol sales - be it a restaurant, a bar, a US290 location, or another type of sale.
“There is a code,” James said, “And there has to be a valid reason to grant a variance. We need to be careful about consistency.”
Mueller mentioned five to six valid reasons, one being a hardship on the owner.
Commissioner James Martin agreed with Mueller. “It would be an undue hardship in terms of competition with other restaurants who do have a license,” Martin said. Commissioner Evelyn Strong responded, “Oak Creek has operated for many years without alcohol. I don’t see undue hardship to continue without alcohol. They back up to a school.”
Commissioner Strong then asked, “How did this come up?”
Attention to the boundary violation by the cafe was raised at the 3/26/2019 DS P&Z meeting by consultant Jon Thompson, an advocate for “Truly Texas Grown Wine Cellars,” when they petitioned for a variance which would allow them to have their internet wine sales “Fulfillment Center” 10.5 ft. short of the Walnut Springs Elementary School 300 ft. boundary.
Approval was denied by the City.
Truly President Larry Epp attended the 6/25/2019 P&Z hearing on Oak Creek Cafe, as an observer. When asked to comment he said, “The discussion was circumspect, yet a continuum.” Truly’s “Tasting Room” was approved for a Mercer St. site, but an alternate site for their “Fulfillment Center” is still in the discussion mode. Even though the City welcomes Truly’s business in Dripping Springs, Epp said, “Setting up our Tasting Room here is contingent on getting our warehouse venue for internet sales. Both here, or not here at all.”