2005 legislation may open doors for restaurants

A 10-year-old piece of state legislation infused with such narrow parameters that it requires a city to have within its midst three specific structures -- a courthouse, an opera house and an old jail -- is apparently a perfect fit for Greencastle.

Courthouse? Check.

Old opera house? Check the west side of the square.

Old jail? Check the corner of Washington and Market streets a block off the square.

And because Greencastle has all of that and a historic downtown district, the city will apparently put another economic development tool in its arsenal to help attract new business downtown.

Not just any downtown business, however, but specifically specialty restaurants that would need liquor licenses in order to operate and thrive.

Mayor Sue Murray announced this week that the city has received verbal approval from the Indiana Alcoholic Beverage Commission and is awaiting formal notification for the possibility of adding up to 10 liquor licenses within the historic district. Approval would make Greencastle only the second Hoosier city to qualify under the 2005 legislation.

The criteria of the legislation have been adopted to encourage unique dining establishments, not just simple bars or pubs.

Liquor licenses are based on county population and overall there are 44 licenses (one- two- and three-way varieties) allocated to Putnam County.

No three-way licenses remain available, however, and just a few beer and wine licenses and wine-only licenses remain.

The possibility for Greencastle to acquire such a tool to help bring new business to the downtown emerged from discussions Mayor Murray had a year ago with the mayor of Valparaiso about its downtown revitalization projects. Murray then brought a resolution (2015-2, Creating Objectives and Criteria for Issuance of ABC Permits) to the City Council in January, setting forth the procedure and actions required to pursue application of a piece of 2005 state legislation in Greencastle.

Senate Enrolled Act 282 -- codified as I.C. 7.1-3-20-16(g) -- was originally written for the city of

Valparaiso, giving it the ability to recommend the granting of up to 10 liquor licenses to restaurant owners and entrepreneurs in its historic downtown. The result has been the emergence of a diverse group of eating establishments in Valpo.

As it turns out the requirements for the granting of such licenses rests on the downtown being designated as a historic district on the National Register of Historic Places -- it must have a courthouse, an opera house and an old jail with the district.

"As people who know Greencastle will attest," Mayor Murray said, "we indeed do meet those requirements."

In January, the City Council approved a resolution setting forth the goals of the act, which is intended to assist small business owners who might be unable to secure a conventional liquor license, in establishing distinctive and unique restaurants in the historic downtown Greencastle area.

A specific set of procedures must be followed in order to access one of the licenses.

City officials stressed that the measure is merely a tool, not a guarantee that any specific restaurant might be coming downtown. In fact, the proposed brewery business planned for the old NAPA store does not qualify under this legislation, Mayor Murray pointed out.

"We have nobody in mind," City Attorney Laurie Hardwick said. "This is just something to have available."

Even though the state has agreed that the City of Greencastle can ask for more licenses to be given, the City Council cannot grant them. The local Alcoholic Beverage Commission Board and the State Bureau of Alcohol and Tobacco are the ultimate licensing agencies.

Anyone interested in receiving more information about this new opportunity is asked to first contact City Planner Shannon Norman (653-7719) to learn more and begin the process.

"Without a doubt," Mayor Murray said earlier this week, "this opportunity is a wonderful conduit to help further the city's downtown strategic plan to encourage the location and operation of distinctive and unique restaurants in Greencastle's historic downtown district."