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Record of Proceedings

Greenville City Council Workshop – October 6, 2025

City Council — Monday, October 6, 2025
BodyGreenville, North Carolina
SessionCity Council
DateMonday, October 6, 2025
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 58:20

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0:00

I'm sure you ever seen a hearst.

0:01

I'm dead.

0:03

You hold a bunch of money in it?

0:06

You ever seen anybody put a money basket when you've been here?

0:10

We've got to use it on the hands.

0:13

All right, good afternoon, everyone.

0:15

Welcome to the October 6th.

0:18

Workshop with the group.

0:22

First, I'd like to call our city clerk for a roll call.

0:25

Aaron Connelly.

0:26

Here.

0:27

Mayor for Tend Daniels.

0:28

Present.

0:29

Councilmember Foreman.

0:30

Here.

0:31

Councilmember Blackburn.

0:33

Present.

0:33

Council Member Stully.

0:35

Here.

0:35

And Councilmember Robinson is legislature will not be joining us this evening.

0:39

Willis.

0:41

My bad.

0:42

I got ahead of myself.

0:43

I'm like, okay.

0:44

Okay, Councilmember Robinson is here.

0:49

Wait a second.

0:50

I like this is hard to miss.

0:53

Sorry for the delay.

0:55

Councilmember Willis has let us know she's going to Mayor Conley.

1:00

All right, they're about to tell them about the approval of the agenda, Mr.

1:03

Attorney.

1:03

Thank you, Mr.

1:04

Mayor.

1:04

Good afternoon, Mayor and Council members.

1:06

I'd exit a closed session motion to be added to the workshop to be read right before adjournment.

1:14

All right, motion made by the present Mr.

1:18

Robinson.

1:21

Present Mr.

1:21

Scully, all those in favor say aye.

1:24

I suppose say nay.

1:25

Motion passes by item number one or no business update from discussion of potential changes to the standards for the bar 22 and microbrewer uses.

1:49

We did talk about bar 2022 at your October meeting, and we'll pick that up at the end.

1:55

So now we're just going to go through the microbrewery piece.

1:59

Thank you.

2:02

So if you serve the background for the microbreweries, are there currently two microbreweries here in town?

2:10

They're specifically in the downtown uptown brewing and Pitt Street Brewing.

2:15

Both of these entities have expressed an interest in serving mixed beverages.

2:21

So under state law, they can serve mixed beverages.

2:26

But under Greenville's regulations, we only allow them to serve here in Ryan.

2:33

And so the main point of this discussion is if council would like to allow microbreweries to serve mixed beverages.

3:00

It has to be at least a minimum of 30% of their floor area, no more than 5%.

3:07

And essentially, that just goes back to when microbreweries were first introduced.

3:13

It was looked at as a way to put these uses in the large buildings that were downtown.

3:19

So the idea was is that the brewing equipment should have a minimum.

3:24

We went with 30%.

3:25

Um so that it is uh, I guess I would say a true use.

3:30

And then we also added a limit of 5,000 square feet because some of these buildings are really large, and we didn't want to turn it into an actual uh beer manufacturer.

3:41

So that's why we have those limiters.

3:45

Um again, microbreweries are very large because they do have to have equipment on site.

3:51

Umtown brewing is about 5600 square feet.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Alcohol Regulation█████████████████████████████████████████████50%
Affordable Housing██████████████15%
Zoning And Land Use████████████13%
Procedural███████████12%
Community Engagement█████5%
Pending Litigation████4%
Public Safety█1%
Summary of Proceedings

Greenville City Council Workshop – October 6, 2025

The Greenville City Council held a workshop on October 6, 2025, at 4:00 PM in City Hall Conference Room 337. Mayor Pro Tem Daniels presided. Councilmembers Foreman, Blackburn, Scully, and Robinson were present; Councilmember Willis was absent. The agenda was approved with an addition of a closed session. The workshop focused on potential changes to standards for microbreweries and Bar 2022, and an update on the Unified Development Ordinance (UDO). A closed session was held at the end.

Discussion Items

Microbrewery Use Standards Update

  • Staff presented options for allowing microbreweries to serve mixed beverages (currently not permitted under city regulations). The two existing microbreweries (Uptown Brewing and Pitt Street Brewing) had expressed interest. Staff recommended:
    • Allow mixed beverage permits.
    • Add a maximum size of 8,000 square feet (to avoid negatively impacting existing microbreweries).
    • Add a 500-foot separation distance from residential properties.
    • Include the same safety and nuisance violations as Bar 2022.
  • Existing microbreweries would need a new special use permit to serve mixed beverages.
  • Council discussion: Some members favored limiting the change to downtown, while others supported citywide application. Councilmember Blackburn initially advocated for limiting to downtown, citing simplicity. Councilmember Foreman supported citywide allowance with Bar 2022 safety requirements, noting that microbreweries are already allowed citywide and this would provide revenue diversification. Councilmember Robinson echoed support for citywide. Councilmember Scully agreed with staff recommendations.
  • Council reached consensus (thumbs up from all present) to adopt staff recommendation for microbreweries citywide: allow mixed beverages, maximum 8,000 square feet, 500-foot separation, and Bar 2022 safety/nuisance provisions.

Bar 2022 Standards Update

  • Staff recommended two changes:
    • Increase the maximum size from 2,000 to 3,500 square feet.
    • Allow Bar 2022 outside downtown (citywide), as it is currently limited to downtown.
  • Staff noted that at 3,500 square feet, there would be 69 locations downtown and 68 citywide (137 total), adding to the current 234 opportunities.
  • Council debate: Councilmember Blackburn urged caution, preferring to first expand Bar 2022 citywide at the existing 2,000-square-foot limit to see how it works, then consider size increases later. She cited the new establishments under the current rules (Agave, two more coming) and wanted deliberate, intentional change. Other members, including Councilmembers Foreman and Scully, argued that 2,000 square feet is too small for profitability, and that 3,500 square feet allows for a variety of establishments (e.g., neighborhood bars, arcade bars) while still keeping sizes manageable. Councilmember Foreman noted that competition could improve bar quality. Councilmember Robinson asked about potential occupancy and police impacts; staff responded that building code determines occupancy and that increased police presence might be needed.
  • Council took a straw poll on staff recommendation: four thumbs up (Foreman, Scully, Robinson, and eventually Blackburn, who reluctantly agreed), one thumbs down? Actually Blackburn initially not in favor, but later said she would reluctantly go along. So consensus to adopt staff recommendation: Bar 2022 allowed citywide with maximum size of 3,500 square feet.

Unified Development Ordinance (UDO) Update

  • Sarah Snocker of Inspire Place Makings presented the final draft of the UDO, which consolidates zoning, subdivision, and other ordinances. Key changes include:
    • Added graphics and tables for clarity.
    • Introduced conditional zoning (a rezoning process where landowners specify conditions and meet with neighbors; approved by City Council).
    • Added standards for tiny homes (on substandard lots) and tiny home communities (minimum 10 lots).
    • Allowed cottage courts (minimum 3 units with shared green space).
    • Allowed accessory dwelling units (ADUs) as a special use in certain districts with restrictions.
    • New 500-foot separation for tobacco/hemp retail.
    • Prohibited rope lighting (with one-year amortization).
    • Enhanced buffer yard materials and opacity standards.
    • Increased native species requirement to 50%.
    • Increased street tree requirement from 2 to 3 per 100 linear feet.
    • Removed ability to substitute trees for shrubs.
    • Increased tree preservation credits (2 credits for preserving large trees).
    • Modernized parking requirements.
    • Added fee-in-lieu for sidewalks and recreation areas.
    • Updated signage to comply with federal/state law.
    • Addressed nonconformity per state law.
  • Public engagement included 7 open houses, 102 attendees, over 500 surveys (paper and online), and a task force of professionals and citizens. Common themes: pedestrian/cyclist safety, affordable housing, accessory dwelling units, lack of services north of Tar River, environmental concerns.
  • Next steps: Planning Board review on October 21, 2025; City Council public hearing on November 13, 2025.
  • Council comments: Appreciation for the process and hard work. Councilmember Foreman noted tiny homes as an affordable option for individuals but not for families; Councilmember Robinson added that it frees up larger units for families. Mayor Pro Tem Daniels highlighted that the UDO is the first step, with a 10-year long-range plan update to follow.

Key Outcomes

  • Microbreweries: Council agreed (unanimous thumbs up) to staff recommendation: allow mixed beverages, maximum size 8,000 square feet, 500-foot residential separation, and apply Bar 2022 safety/nuisance standards. Citywide. Existing microbreweries must obtain a new special use permit.
  • Bar 2022: Council agreed (4 thumbs up, with one initially hesitant but ultimately consenting) to staff recommendation: increase maximum size from 2,000 to 3,500 square feet and allow citywide (outside downtown).
  • UDO: Presentation received. The final draft will be presented to the Planning Board on October 21, 2025, and to City Council for a public hearing on November 13, 2025.
  • Closed Session: Council voted unanimously to enter closed session to consult with the attorney on pending litigation (City of Greenville vs. Camping Girl Property LLC) and to instruct staff on negotiating the acquisition of real property.

Meeting Transcript

I'm sure you ever seen a hearst. I'm dead. You hold a bunch of money in it? You ever seen anybody put a money basket when you've been here? We've got to use it on the hands. All right, good afternoon, everyone. Welcome to the October 6th. Workshop with the group. First, I'd like to call our city clerk for a roll call. Aaron Connelly. Here. Mayor for Tend Daniels. Present. Councilmember Foreman. Here. Councilmember Blackburn. Present. Council Member Stully. Here. And Councilmember Robinson is legislature will not be joining us this evening. Willis. My bad. I got ahead of myself. I'm like, okay. Okay, Councilmember Robinson is here. Wait a second. I like this is hard to miss. Sorry for the delay. Councilmember Willis has let us know she's going to Mayor Conley. All right, they're about to tell them about the approval of the agenda, Mr. Attorney. Thank you, Mr. Mayor. Good afternoon, Mayor and Council members. I'd exit a closed session motion to be added to the workshop to be read right before adjournment. All right, motion made by the present Mr. Robinson. Present Mr. Scully, all those in favor say aye. I suppose say nay. Motion passes by item number one or no business update from discussion of potential changes to the standards for the bar 22 and microbrewer uses. We did talk about bar 2022 at your October meeting, and we'll pick that up at the end. So now we're just going to go through the microbrewery piece. Thank you. So if you serve the background for the microbreweries, are there currently two microbreweries here in town? They're specifically in the downtown uptown brewing and Pitt Street Brewing. Both of these entities have expressed an interest in serving mixed beverages. So under state law, they can serve mixed beverages. But under Greenville's regulations, we only allow them to serve here in Ryan. And so the main point of this discussion is if council would like to allow microbreweries to serve mixed beverages.

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