Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Zoning topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Hondo council approves country bar permit with on-site security requirement
Summary
The Hondo City Council approved a specific-use permit for a proposed country bar at 1703 Nineteenth Street, adopting Planning & Zoning's recommended security conditions and adding flexibility for the owner to use bouncers or other security at his discretion. Council recorded the vote by voice with no opposition.
The Hondo City Council on April 28 approved a specific-use permit allowing a country bar to operate at 1703 Nineteenth Street, subject to on-premise security requirements recommended by the Planning and Zoning Commission.
Planning and zoning recommended approval with conditions that adequate security be provided during hours of operation and that weekend coverage be retained from 9 p.m. to 2 a.m., using on-duty or off-duty police personnel or a security guard service. City staff read the P&Z memo into the record and confirmed those conditions were part of the recommendaton.
Owner and applicant Rick Verani told the council he would retain security during peak hours. "We will have security guards over there as the sun set till closings, so if there's any issues, we will take care of that," Verani said, describing experience operating a similar business and his plan to provide on-site security and trained servers.
Councilmembers debated whether to specify the exact type of security (off-duty police vs. private security or bouncers) and whether such a requirement would place the new business at a competitive disadvantage compared with existing establishments. The council adopted a motion to approve the P&Z recommendation and explicitly allowed the owner to meet the security requirement through bouncers or a security service at the owner's discretion; the motion carried by a voice vote with no recorded opposition.
Votes at a glance: the consent agenda (April 14 minutes and appointments) also passed earlier in the meeting by voice vote; the country-bar permit passed after the council added the security language described above.
Next steps: staff said the council's motion will be reflected in the permit form and that an ordinance spelling out conditions will be drafted and returned to the council for finalization.
