HopCat in Grand Rapids, will open a new location in East Lansing. The East Lansing City Council unanimously approved the brewpub’s site plan and special use permit to sell alcohol during its Tuesday meeting.
Editor’s note: This article was updated at about 10 p.m. Tuesday, April 3 to include full details of East Lansing City Council’s meeting.
East Lansing’s HopCat’s site plan and special use permit to sell alcohol were approved unanimously at Tuesday’s East Lansing City Council meeting at City Hall, 410 Abbot Road.
The bar is scheduled to be built on the ground floor of The Residences, 211 Ann St., the eight-story apartment building under construction downtown.
At its Feb. 27 meeting, the East Lansing Planning Commission unanimously recommended council approve the special use permit and site plan for the brewpub.
Owner and MSU alumnus Mark Sellers said construction on the bar will start in about two weeks and should be open for business in early August. Sellers said he’s happy the council’s approval was unanimous.
“It makes me feel really good about coming here to East Lansing,” he said. “I bleed green, so this is going to be like coming home to me.”
The bar will have a capacity of 271 people with seating on the ground floor and mezzanine, and there also will be outside seating on the patio.
Councilmember Kevin Beard said the bar provides an interesting niche he doesn’t think the city, or even the region, has to offer.
“This is going to provide an attraction for the downtown that I think will be a real plus for our community,” he said.
Mayor Pro Tem Nathan Triplett echoed Beard’s statement, saying it shows a great deal of commitment to the city that the applicant has been so responsive to the concerns that were raised regarding accessibility, occupancy levels and approved occupancy.
“That says a lot to me as someone who’s being asked to approve this application,” he said. “This will be a strong addition to our downtown.”
Council also unanimously approved implementing license application fees, around $285, for a change of ownership for a business.
City Clerk Marie McKenna said purpose of the change is to recover the costs that are born by the city when a restaurant changes ownership, estimated to be around $285.
A public hearing was set for April 16 on a change to an ordinance to clarify what exactly is “good moral character” for people applying to become taxi and cab drivers in the city.
The proposed change would inform applicants whether they fit a certain criteria to become a taxi driver so they can avoid paying a $80 nonrefundable fee.
Another public hearing also was set for May 7 for the community to discuss Jonna’s 2 Go and its attempt to obtain a liquor license to sell liquor along with their beer and wine sales.
The store’s special use permit was unanimously recommended for approval by the East Lansing Planning Commission at its March 27 meeting.
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