Winchester City staff: proposed Spaces Inn karaoke venue to use sound-dampening, limit outdoor activity

A city staff member told Winchester City officials that a proposal to convert the Spaces Inn into a karaoke venue lies within 200 feet of a residential district and therefore requires planning review and City Council or Planning and Economic Development consideration. The applicant proposes three private karaoke rooms, a front-area general karaoke space, a bar serving refreshments with no on-site food preparation, and a small outdoor smoking bench; no outdoor music is proposed.

The staff member said the applicant described technical sound‑dampening measures — characterized in the transcript as “sound downing” — and noted the applicant has a background in communications and radio and provided cross sections showing how those measures would be installed. Staff reported the site has ample parking and, based on the applicant’s proposal and the proposed hours of operation (hours not specified in the transcript), did not identify obvious negative effects to surrounding properties.

Staff emphasized the final layout remains subject to building code review and could be modified during that process. The transcript indicates snacks or food for patrons would be provided by a neighboring pizza restaurant (transcribed as “3 14 pizza”), and that the applicant does not plan any on‑site food preparation.

No formal vote or decision appears in the provided transcript excerpt. The item remains subject to further review for zoning compliance, building‑code approval and any conditions the council or planning staff may impose.

Next steps noted in the transcript: the proposal will proceed through Planning and Economic Development review and building code review; no further dates or final council actions were specified in the excerpt.