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June 18, 2009

Runnin’ Rudy’s grandfathered, can sell alcohol

By Kelsey Palmer

news@jacksonvilleprogress.com

Rusk City Council last week amended the city’s newly adopted distance regulations for the sale of beer and wine.

Rather than allow variances for businesses prohibited by the regulations from selling the alcoholic beverages, the new ordinance allows for recognition of grandfathered-in status’ for establishments open at the time of the May 2009 wet/dry election.

That decision allows Runnin’ Rudy’s convenience store to eventually sell beer wine.

The original ordinance adopted the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission-recommended distance regulations from schools, churches and hospitals and gave the council the right to approve variances as it deemed fit.

The TABC regulations mandate 300 feet between the property lines of a school campus and any business selling alcohol and 300 feet from front door to front door from such businesses for churches and hospitals.

“That way the council can review applications on a case-by-case basis because so many different variables can come into play,” Raiborn said during a previous meeting.

In a special meeting held a week later, the owner of Runnin’ Rudy’s — a convenience store whose property line is not the required 300 feet from Rusk Elementary School’s property line — approached the council with a request for a variance to sell alcohol. He was denied a variance.

In the same meeting, Rusk Independent School District Superintendent Dr. James Largent expressed his concerns in a letter to the council.

“Our city is going through a new period,” Largent told the Daily Progress after the special meeting. “What precedence are we setting for the future (by allowing variances)? If the council says ‘yes’ now, how can it say ‘no’ to another business later on?”

Sparked by Largent’s concerns, the council decided to deny Runnin’ Rudy’s request and find another way to help pave the way for local businesses wanting to sell alcohol. In Thursday’s meeting, the grandfather ordinance provided that outlet.

After the addition to the grandfather ordinance, the council removed the variance clause.

In other business the council denied Robert Philbrick’s request for a zoning change from residential to general business for property located at 895 S. Dickinson Drive. In a meeting on June 2, the Planning and Zoning Commission was presented with opposition to Philbrick’s request and the commission recommended it be denied. Philbrick, however, was not present at that meeting.

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