Commission Votes In Favor Of Permit For Private Club

The Canton Planning & Zoning Commission voted in favor of a specific use permit for a private club in a planned development in the city, during Monday night’s meeting.

Four letters were sent out about the request to neighboring businesses. Only one letter was sent back, and it was in favor of the request made by Mill Creek RV Park and Resort located at 2102 N. Trade Days Blvd. owned by Cottage Investors L.L.C.

Board member Lynn Etheridge questioned if the request was the same as that made by the Ranchero Restaurant last year.

"The Ranchero asked for a food and beverage license," Canton Code Enforcement Officer Coy Prather explained. "This is for a private club license. With a food and beverage license, the TABC (Texas Alcohol & Beverage Commission), requires that you have at least 50 percent of your sales food…Private clubs, he has to serve some food items but he doesn’t have to have a percentage of food sales. It can be more set up for alcohol sales."

Mill Creek Ranch RV Park & Cottage Resort General Manager Bud Surles said, "We are not going to have a bar."

He explained that currently their facility does not have the ability to serve alcoholic beverages at weddings, family reunions, etc.

"They have to bring that from outside and when they bring it from outside, we require that they hire an off-duty policeman for security purposes," Surles said.

"We are not going to have a bar. This is not something where we are going to be serving people in the evenings," Surles said.

Assistant city secretary Debra Johnson also noted that Mill Creek RV Park does meet the requirement of being more than 1,000-feet from a school.

"Will this serving area be in a particular building, or will it be primarily for weddings and receptions?" board member Donald Spence asked.

Surles said wherever there is an event that takes place where people can rent the facility to have an event is where they will have sites set up. He said there would be five locations that apply.

"It would be strictly a member’s only thing," Surles noted. "Members, being the guests."

"It’s not the kind of thing where we have a bar open," Surles said.

"We get people from his weddings now," Savannah Winery & Bistro owner Ed Pickett said. "…They bring in these people of quality who spend money in town."

"What he is really bringing into town is doing the town a lot of good, it’s doing us a lot of good and so we wanted you to know that we are not against it at all," Pickett added.

Etheridge made the motion for the specific use permit, it was seconded by Spence and the motion passed, with Mill Creek RV Park owner and board member Bud Surles abstaining from the motion. Board members Elisa Heard and Kerry Huddle were not present at the meeting.

In other business the board:

-approved the request for zoning change from Rural Agricultural (RA) to General Business District (B-2) on that four-acre tract of land located at 24980 State Highway 64, Canton, owned by the city of Canton.

Spence made the motion to approve the zoning change for the property, which was recently annexed by the city of Canton.

The property houses the newly refurbished city annex, police department, and municipal court complex, and was purchased from the state after previously being used by the Texas Department of Transportation.

-approved minutes from the March 9 meeting.