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Addison commissioners press staff on enforcement, hours and smoking conditions for proposed hookah lounge
Summary
At a work session the Planning and Zoning Commission reviewed a special-use permit request for a hookah lounge, probed enforcement capacity and fines, and discussed whether the commission can add smoking-related conditions to an SUP; staff confirmed prior notices and said habitual violations can lead to CO revocation.
Leslie Knack, the town's director of development and neighborhood services, previewed a special-use permit for Prestige Ambiance (a proposed hookah lounge) and said the item is returning that night for consideration. "This is a special use permit to reuse an existing building," she said.
Commissioners raised operational concerns including enforcement capacity for violations of hours or noise, competitive impacts if the applicant must close earlier than nearby businesses, and whether smoking can be limited by P&Z conditions. Knack described the enforcement sequence: staff typically issues a notice of violation, sets a compliance date ("about 10 business days" in routine cases), and can fine a business for ongoing violations. "They could receive a fine up to $2,000 per day the violation exists," she said, and for continual or habitual problems enforcement can escalate to revoking the certificate of occupancy.
Staff also reviewed public comments submitted earlier in the day and said copies were provided to commissioners for the meeting. Knack identified examples on the public-comment list: LaPasha operates under an SUP that requires midnight closure Sunday through Thursday and 2 a.m. Friday and Saturday; staff said LaPasha was sent a notice of violation and its hours were corrected. By contrast, the Royal Palace SUP dates from the early 1980s and does not list operating hours, which staff said makes it a potentially illegal nonconforming use in some respects but that staff has made compliance visits.
On smoking, commissioners asked whether P&Z can recommend that council amend the smoking ordinance or impose smoking-related conditions. Knack said the existing smoking ordinance requires separation of smoking and nonsmoking areas where feasible (signage and ventilation) and that the commission may put smoking-related conditions on an SUP approval (for example, designating an enclosed nonsmoking area as a condition). She cautioned that some obligations are set by the ordinance text and by existing SUPs.
What happens next
Staff said the applicant (the building owner) planned to attend the regular meeting and will respond to questions and public comments. The replat and the SUP item were not approved or denied at the work session; staff and the applicant requested additional time or clarification where needed and the hookah-lounge SUP returned for formal consideration that evening.
Representative transcript quotes
- Leslie Knack: "It would come back before the commission in January." (replat extension timeline)
- Leslie Knack on enforcement: "It does identify a compliance date that would typically be about 10 business days... They could receive a fine up to $2,000 per day the violation exists."
