The Lincoln City Council has agreed to delay a decision on whether to allow Open Harvest cooperative grocery to sell alcohol, hoping three months will give city staff time to find a better solution that will ease neighborhood association fears.
Proposed zoning changes that would have allowed Open Harvest and other neighborhood grocery stores to get liquor licenses did not have the four votes necessary, said City Councilwoman Leirion Gaylor Baird. She proposed the delay, which the council approved unanimously.Ìý
Waiting keeps the possibility of finding a solution alive.
Neighborhood groups have argued that the city's strict zoning code — which prohibits new off-sale liquor licenses on property that is less than 100 feet from a home, church, school, park or day care — ended the earlier proliferation of liquor outlets in the city's older neighborhoods.
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And several neighborhood associations strongly opposed the grocery store exemption that would allow Open Harvest to get a liquor license, fearing it would open the door to other exemptions in shopping areas in older neighborhoods.
Gaylor Baird said she hopes planning staff and city attorneys will be able to craft a different exemption that Lincoln’s neighborhood associations could support during the three-month delay.
Moving away from a clear, consistent standard such as the 100-foot rule is tricky, she said. But she would like to find a way to change zoning rules so Open Harvest could get a liquor license without exempting all grocery stores.
Councilman Carl Eskridge said he has been contacted about this issue more than any other single issue — at the movie, at the gym, at the grocery store.
What he heard during testimony were supporters of Open Harvest, who want to see it thrive, and people in opposition to the change who also like Open Harvest but are concerned about the future implications of the grocery store exemption.
Perhaps there is a different way to accomplish this, he said.
Councilwoman Jane Raybould did not participate in the discussion and did not vote on the issue because of a conflict of interest. Raybould is part of the family-owned business that includes Russ's Market and Super Saver stores, and owns a store that would be affected by the proposed changes.Ìý