Douglas County approves Tier 2 agritourism permit for Busted Cat Brewery with setback waiver

The Douglas County Board of County Commissioners on July 22 approved a Tier 2 agritourism permit for an application submitted on behalf of Steve Hood of Busted Cat Brewery to allow a brewery and a farm stay on a Highway 40 property identified in staff materials. Staff presentation by Amaya Dajani noted the site includes the historic Fitzpatrick "Clock House" and an existing large accessory building proposed for brewery production; staff recommended approval with stipulated conditions and a waiver to reduce the separation requirement from 50 feet to 35 feet for that existing structure.

Commissioners questioned staff and the applicant about hours, events and life-safety inspections; Amaya Dajani emphasized that all farm stays and vacation rentals must pass a life-safety inspection and that the brewery would require a change-of-use permit and successful registration with Kansas tourism. The applicant (introduced in staff remarks as Steve Hood) said he generally plans for 9 a.m.–5 p.m. operations and does not expect more than six overnight guests in the farm stay ("there's 3 bedrooms ... 6"). The board approved the permit by voice vote; the transcript records the motion to approve a "type 2 agri tourism permit request from Steve Hood of Busted Cat Brewery" and the action passed with affirmative votes.

Note on address in record: staff materials refer to the site as "417 Highway 40," while the motion on the floor references "4417 Highway 40." The transcript does not resolve the discrepancy; the precise street number is not specified definitively in the meeting record and may require verification with county staff or the application packet.