STARKVILLE — With an indoor pickleball court possibly on the horizon, aldermen called Tuesday for a series of public hearings that could change the city’s ordinances on alcohol sales.
During Tuesday’s board meeting at City Hall, Mayor Lynn Spruill said an unnamed party is interested in opening an indoor pickleball facility in the Industrial Park area but has requested to serve beer to its customers.
“They would like to serve alcohol without having to have a full-on kitchen, with the overhead fan, the vent and all the things that go along with it,” Spruill said during the meeting. “They would still serve food, but it wouldn’t require that, and it’s a significant investment. And so they would like to serve beer.”
City ordinances prohibit beer or light wine being sold for on-premises consumption if the seller does not have suitable kitchen facilities so that food sales generate 25% of the business’ gross revenue. The ordinance was amended in 2017, so the percentage requirement does not apply to brewpubs or small craft breweries within the Leisure and Recreation District – which does not include the area in question.
Spruill told The Dispatch after the meeting that she is suggesting the percentage requirement be removed, since the city has trouble monitoring that requirement in the first place. She is also suggesting changes that could create a path for businesses that do not have a full kitchen to come before the board for approval to sell beer and light wine.
“The language that I put in there right now is to look at it on a case by case basis with their justification for why they wouldn’t need food,” Spruill said. “It doesn’t travel with the property. It only goes to that business. So each one would allow the board to make that determination.”
Spruill said the kitchen requirement may not be beneficial to all businesses. For example, she said, a sandwich shop may want to serve beer without needing a full kitchen to prepare its food.
At the same time, Spruill said, Starkville Police Department Chief Mark Ballard is reviewing the ordinance to possibly tighten up other requirements, like alcohol sellers’ responsibility to manage overcrowding and queueing outside of their businesses.
Ward 3 Alderman Jeffrey Rupp moved to hold a series of public hearings concerning the ordinance changes as an “avid pickleball player.”
After the meeting, Rupp told The Dispatch that the city’s outdoor pickleball courts at McKee Park are always full of players, including seniors. An indoor court, he said, could help those players to have a spot to stay active year-round.
“In Starkville, about a year ago, we did the pickleball courts, and it has been transformational for the people who are out here and participating, exercising, socializing,” Rupp said. “We’ve hosted tournaments that brought in some money. I… absolutely embrace the idea, and I don’t see anything wrong with grown-ups having a beer after pickleball.”
Rupp said the change could also help business owners who may struggle with keeping track of the 25% requirement or otherwise meeting it.
The board voted 6-1 to move forward with the public hearings on the ordinance, with Vice Mayor Roy A. Perkins opposed.
Perkins told The Dispatch the current ordinance is working as-is, and he hasn’t heard any problems with it in the past. Perkins said he voted against the public hearings because he doesn’t want to make an exception for one business when others have been held to the current standards.
“If you’re going to operate in our city, here’s the ordinance,” Perkins said. “Comply with it.”
The public hearings on the ordinance change will be held at the board’s next two regular meetings, Spruill said.
You can help your community
Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 46 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.
You can help your community
Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 46 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.
