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Date: 8/25/2021
EAST LONGMEADOW – The Step Sister Cafe’s request for a special permit to open their business at the Brew Practitioners location was approved by the Planning Board at their Aug. 10 meeting, following continued discussion of whether or not food had to be served in order for Brew Practitioners to operate.
In mid-July, owners of Brew Practitioners Tanzania Cannon-Eckerle and Joseph Eckerle attended a public hearing at the East Longmeadow Town Council where there was significant discussion regarding the consumption of food on site. At the time, Councilor R. Patrick Henry commented that the Planning Board had not made a recommendation on food, and stated that he believed the pouring permit required food to be served.
Cannon-Eckerle explained that in contrast, while Brew Practitioners was contracting with a third-party food vendor – The Step Sister Cafe – there was in fact no requirement in the farmer series pouring permit – the permit that they were requesting – that they serve food.
Again, at the time of the meeting on July 13, Henry suggested that the issue be taken up by the licensing subcommittee, to which Councilor Kathleen Hill – who sits on the subcommittee – explained that the Brew Practitioner owners were “very well-read” on licensing matters and that she felt no additional information would likely come from discussion by the subcommittee. The council then voted to approve the farmer series pouring permit for Brew Practitioners without further conditions.
Following the Town Council approval, the Planning Board hosted a site plan review waiver hearing for Step sisters Cafe on July 20.
Applicant Georgianna Brunton appeared before the Planning Board for the site plan waiver review for the restaurant at 45 Baldwin St. in the existing structure in the industrial zoning district.
Brunton shared that she has the “very tiny spot” as soon as patrons walk into the building. There will be an ordering counter, and she described it as separate from the brewery. She said they will be selling “very light bites” including a giant pretzel, a few sandwiches, a light flatbread and two dessert items.
Brunton stated that her planned hours were to be 4 to 8 p.m. on Thursdays and Fridays and 12 to 8 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays.
The meeting then turned to questions from the board, upon which time Planning Board Vice Chair George Kingston asserted that “technically, this is a restaurant” and questioned why this was filed as a site plan waiver instead of a special permit. Director of Planning and Community Development Bethany Yeo explained that this use was viewed as more of a “booth rental” rather than a restaurant. Kingston said he felt this was “treading on an edge.”
“It’s a food service operation where people will be eating there while they sip their beers. I don’t see how it is not a restaurant even though the food service is light. I would hate to set a precedent for this sort of thing, personally,”?Kingston said.
Planning Board Chair Russell Denver said that this is “new territory” and that he would not classify the space as a “bar with food.”
Kingston added that his feeling was The Step Sister Cafe is a separate entity from Brew Practitioners. “It’s not the brewery that’s doing it, they’re getting somebody else in there to do it. Again – this is the way it’s starting, two years from now the applicant could sell the business to somebody else, no special permit in place...personally, I’m reluctant to treat it as a waiver.” He reiterated that he “liked the idea” and he “loved the kind of food [Brunton’s] serving,” but it is a technicality.
Planning Board member Peter Punderson agreed with Kingston because of the possibility of a “precedent being set” and thought approving the waiver could weaken the town’s bylaws.
After deliberation, the Planning Board agreed that they would host a special meeting on Aug. 10 for The Step Sister Cafe as a special permit hearing instead of a waiver.
At the Aug. 10 hearing, the topic of whether or not food had to be served on site for the brewery to operate was revisited.
Brunton appeared once again before the Planning Board, along with Cannon-Eckerle and Eckerle, who stated they joined the meeting to offer their support of the Step Sister Cafe joining their business. Brunton explained she worked with Yeo to be sure her paperwork for the special permit hearing was in order.
Addressing comments he said he saw from the Town Council at their July 13 meeting, Kingston commented, “We need to note that when the bar is open, there has to be food available...typically, they require the full menu to be available while the bar is open. Other than that, I think we’re in good shape, because it’s not a bar now, it’s a restaurant with beer.”
Later in the meeting, Cannon-Eckerle addressed Kingston’s comments stating, “It’s not a bar, it’s a brewery,” adding, “That was set and addressed at our public hearing...that discrimination cannot be made here.”
She continued to state that the current hearing they were attending was for Brunton and her restaurant, and that there could not be a mandate put on Brew Practitioners from that hearing.
“So I can be clear, the mandate that the brewery has to have food in order to operate is actually relevant to the brewery status and not to the Step Sister Cafe status, and we’re not a party to this action,” Cannon-Eckerle said, reiterating that the hearing they were attending was only involving The Step Sister Cafe.
Denver asked for clarification, at which point Eckerle joined the call and reiterated Cannon-Eckerle’s points, stating, “Breweries do not have to serve food in order to be open. That’s just because of the farmer brewers permit – it’s not a liquor license. There’s a difference between those two licenses.”
Kingston thanked Eckerle for the clarification.
With little discussion left, the Planning Board approved the special permit for The Step Sister Cafe.