East 11th cocktail lounge plan met with opposition, no recommendation - Austin Monitor

""This case began 493 days ago, in early May of '24, and is only about restoring my property entitlements," said Paul Stables, the property owner."

"Stables argued that the city had given "no reason" for the cocktail use lounge being prohibited."

"The petition cited the history of the corridor, which it says suffered "terrible conditions" during the late 1980s and 1990s due to a high density of bars and liquor stores, and noted community organizing to improve those conditions resulted in the current prohibitions."

""This is not the first time that this has come up," said Fannie Akingbala, a retiree and chair of the Ebenezer Social Justice and Advocacy Ministry. "In every instance, we've come together to oppose it. Our minds are made up.""

An owner at 1201 East 11th Street seeks a zoning change to restore cocktail lounges as an allowed use by updating the neighborhood conservation combining district (NCCD) conditions and the Urban Renewal Plan. The site sits between Paperboy restaurant and Nickel City bar. The owner, Paul Stables, said the effort is to restore property entitlements and that the city provided "no reason" for the prohibition. Neighbors, congregants from Ebenezer Baptist and Our Lady of Guadalupe, and over 400 petition signers oppose the change, citing a history of "terrible conditions" from high bar and liquor-store density in the 1980s–1990s. The Planning Commission expressed ambivalence and a motion to decline was made.

Read at Austin Monitor