Sep 18, 2007 10:33 pm US/Central
Some Deep Ellum Bars, Clubs Scramble To Stay Open
by Jay Gormley
DALLAS (CBS 11 News) ―
Bar and club owners in Deep Ellum are scrambling to file for special use permits. The deadline is Wednesday.
Without the permits, the bars will be forced to shut down.
That's why Julie Campbell from the bar "Mink" is buried in paperwork.
"I feel like I was blindsided. I know our landlord didn't tell us anything," said Campbell. "I don't know who dropped the ball in letting us know."
Campbell is like many bar and club owners in Deep Ellum, scrambling to apply for an S.U.P. That's not an easy task since these particular permits require all types of forms, blue prints and zoning maps.
"The first that we had heard anything about this is when some magical fairy put a packet of information through my mail slot on Thursday morning saying this was coming up," said Micheal Scheel from the bar "The Amsterdam."
All applications must be filed by Wednesday so the city council can vote on them by December 12.
After December 12, any bar or club in Deep Ellum without an S.U.P. will have to shut it's doors.
Many bar owners are upset because they say they were not notified of the deadline.
"I went around to all the other businesses and none of them were aware of it," said Scheel.
Barry Annino of the Deep Ellum Foundation said there's no excuses.
"This was a property owner's decision. It was done 14 months ago," said Annino. "They have some responsibility to tell their tenants."
Annino said requiring S.U.P.s for all bars and clubs in Deep Ellum was passed in June 2006.
However, some bar owners thought they were grandfathered in or exempt. Others believed that the permits only pertained to after-hour clubs. Some simply assumed they had until December 12 to file.
Once again, the Deep Ellum Foundation says there's no excuses since there were several public meetings outlining the permit process.
(CBS 11 News)
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