Plan commission recommends zoning changes to allow bars and live performance venues in downtown Clayton

The Clayton Plan Commission on Jan. 6 recommended that the Board of Aldermen consider text amendments to Chapter 405 (zoning) and Chapter 600 (alcoholic beverages) to permit bars, entertainment venues and live-performance venues in the city’s High-Density Commercial (HDC) district and to repeal the existing Entertainment Overlay.

Anna, the city planner presenting the proposal, said the change responds to the comprehensive plan’s recommendation to update liquor-license regulations to allow bars in downtown and to reduce regulatory conflicts between base zoning and overlays. The staff draft would repeal the Entertainment Overlay District but preserve or relocate many of its performance- and noise‑control requirements into Chapter 405. Bars and live-performance venues would be added as conditional uses in the HDC, subject to conditional-use permit review with specific standards for noise-abatement plans, seating layouts and capacity. Chapter 600 would be updated to align city license definitions with Missouri state statute language and preserve a numerical cap carried from the overlay for live-performance liquor licenses.

Commissioners and staff discussed detailed thresholds that appear in the draft. Staff explained several definitions were carried forward from the overlay: a numerical cap (12) for live-performance venues that seek a liquor license, an operational threshold that a live-performance venue host performances at least six days per month (and that some definitions use a 50% days-open threshold), and liquor-license provisions that reference minimum food-sales or other-income percentages for certain license types. Anna and staff repeatedly noted that some of those thresholds stem from the state liquor-license framework and the overlay language now being relocated to more appropriate chapters.

Councilmember/commissioner feedback focused on simplification and business viability. Commissioner Bridget (full name not given in the transcript) said the overlay had attracted no takers since it was created and voiced support for giving downtown more flexibility. Commissioners raised these policy questions: whether to preserve a primary-entrance restriction on Maryland Avenue (staff recommended keeping it to protect adjacent residences), whether the numerical cap of 12 for live-performance liquor licenses should be changed (staff explained it was carried from the overlay), and whether the wine-bar square-footage minimum should be removed. The commission moved to recommend approval of the proposed text amendments to the Board of Aldermen with two administrative requests: that staff simplify the zoning definitions in Chapter 405 where possible and that the Board strike the 1,500-square-foot minimum for wine bars.

Public comment included an objection from Peter Smith, who said allowing more bars was a bad idea and urged a much smaller cap, citing public-safety concerns. Staff and the commission noted that liquor‑license qualifications are governed in large part by Missouri statute and that changes to licensing classifications and fees would be reviewed by finance and legal staff before the Board of Aldermen acts.

Action: the commission voted to recommend the proposed revisions with the suggestions described above. Staff said most of the remaining edits will be in Chapter 600 (alcohol licensing), which is administratively and legally separate from the zoning recommendations but will accompany the zoning changes when forwarded to the Board of Aldermen.

Why it matters: the amendments would allow bars and venues without a food-sales requirement to operate in downtown Clayton under conditional-use review, aiming to increase downtown vibrancy while retaining tools (CUP conditions, noise plans, hours) to address potential nuisance impacts.