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OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD

Record of Proceedings

City Planning Commission Meeting - March 11, 2025

City Planning Commission — Tuesday, March 11, 2025

BodyNew Orleans, Louisiana

SessionCity Planning Commission

DateTuesday, March 11, 2025

StatusFILED

Video Record

0:00 / 44:45

Transcript — VerbatimClick a timed line to jump · ⧉ to share it

0:00

Oh good afternoon everyone.

0:02

Today is March 11th.

0:05

It's 144 p.m.

0:06

Thank you for coming to today's city planning commission regular meeting.

0:12

First, we will start by uh roll call followed by the formal public hearing of rules and then our regular business.

0:23

So I'll call roll Commissioner Johnson.

0:28

Commissioner Lund.

0:30

Commissioner Josh Gupta.

0:32

Here.

0:32

Commissioner Whitry.

0:33

Here.

0:34

Commissioner Jordan here.

0:35

Commissioner Brown.

0:36

Here.

0:37

Commissioner Steve.

0:38

Here.

0:39

Commissioner Stewart.

0:40

Here.

0:42

Okay.

0:42

So the formal public hearing rules reads as follows.

0:47

The City Planning Commission.

0:49

The City Planning Commission has established certain rules governing the procedures to be followed at public hearings.

0:54

Before speaking, each person shall give their name, address, and state whom he or she is representing.

1:01

Proponents of the proposal will speak first for a period of 10 minutes.

1:05

Each speaker shall be allowed a maximum of two minutes.

1:09

Opponents or other interested parties will speak second for a period of 15 minutes.

1:14

Each speaker shall be allowed a maximum of two minutes.

1:18

Proponents will be allowed a period of six minutes for a rebuttal.

1:21

Each speaker shall be allowed a maximum of two minutes.

1:25

Opponents will not be allowed to rebut.

1:27

No material including written matter, photographs, maps, and other items will be accepted by the commission or its staff at any time during this public hearing.

1:36

This procedure shall be followed followed except at such a time when the presiding officer shall, with the approval of the commission members present, extend such time.

1:53

Commissioner Whitry will make a motion to adopt those meeting minutes from February 25th.

1:57

Second, Commissioner Stewart.

2:00

We have a motion on the floor for adoption from Commissioner Whitry.

2:04

Seconded by Commissioner Stewart.

2:06

If there's no further discussion, we will vote our machines.

2:26

And our meeting minutes are adopted.

2:35

Zoning Docket 1425 is a request for a text amendment to add wine shop as a conditional use in the CPD5 urban core neighborhood lower intensity mixed use district.

2:46

This is a reapplication of zoning docket 12619, which was recommended for denial by the City Planning Commission and subsequently denied by the City Council.

2:54

This request will again allow the applicant to open a wine shop at Pluck Restaurant, which is located at 722 Girard in the CBD 5 districts.

3:03

Since their initial application, there have been changes made to the CZO, affecting the definition, use standards, and use permissions of wine shops.

3:12

They are now permitted in more base zone zoning districts than in 2019.

3:16

However, these base zoning districts typically permit bars and the retail sale of packaged alcohol either through either by rights or through the conditional use process.

3:26

So this proposal contemplates wine shops as conditional use in the CPD5 district.

3:32

The CBD 5 district prohibits bars outright and allows the retail sale of package alcohol through the conditional use process.

3:40

So the city planning commission has consistently recommended denial for wine shops in zoning districts where bars aren't permitted.

3:48

Staff also contends that approval of this request will undermine the intrinsic nature of this lower intensity CBD5 district, which is catered to residential and neighborhood serving uses.

4:00

Therefore, staff recommends denial of this request.

4:03

Thank you.

4:03

We have a couple of comment cards in support.

4:06

First from the applicant, Nicole Weber.

4:10

Good afternoon, and thank you everybody for being here for our two uh zoning dockets.

4:14

Obviously, we're coupled with the second one.

4:16

Um it's part two of this request.

4:19

So PLEC wine and restaurant is um in a unique situation that in order to make state and city laws work together because they don't always coincide.

4:32

Um, what we're recommending is to do a conditional use in the first 500 square feet.

4:37

There's two separate entrances and exits at PLC.

4:40

Um, and what we're recommending or asking for is that the first um 500 square feet, which is the minimum requirement for state law, be the wine shop.

4:50

And so it would have its own entrance, and that's where the wine shop would be located.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting

Zoning And Land Use█████████████████████████████████████████████76%

Alcoholic Beverage Regulation███████████18%

Procedural████6%

Summary of Proceedings

City Planning Commission Regular Meeting

Date: March 11, 2025
Time: 1:44 PM
Location: Council Chambers
Presiding: Chair (not named in transcript)
Commissioners Present: Johnson, Lund, Gupta, Whitry, Jordan, Brown, Steve, Stewart

The meeting began with roll call, formal reading of public hearing rules, and adoption of the minutes from the February 25, 2025 meeting. The primary business items were Zoning Docket 014/25 (a text amendment to add "wine shop" as a conditional use in the CBD-5 district) and Zoning Docket 015/25 (a conditional use application for a wine shop at 722-726 Girod Street, the site of Pluck Restaurant). The meeting concluded with ratification of subdivision applications.

Consent Calendar

Adoption of Minutes: The minutes of the February 25, 2025 meeting were adopted unanimously (motion by Commissioner Whitry, second by Commissioner Stewart).

Public Comments & Testimony

Nicole Webre (applicant, 2131 Bienville St.) – Expressed support for the text amendment and conditional use, explaining the need to align state and city laws. Proposed limiting the wine shop to 500 square feet with a separate entrance, no on-site consumption, and noted that a conditional use process would prevent a flood of similar applications.
Sky Latour (owner of Pluck Wine Bar & Restaurant) – Expressed support, stating that selling wine retail would provide stability and allow wine education. Mentioned a 15-year lease on the property.
Craig Mitchell (615 Baronne St., former planning commissioner) – Expressed strong support, describing Pluck as a "home away from home" and a responsible business. Requested ability to purchase bottles of wine tasted at the restaurant.
Mark Schneider (731 St. Charles Ave.) – Expressed support, highlighting the high quality and rarity of wines sold at Pluck and the restaurant's James Beard Award nomination.
Michael Duplantier (820 Baronne St., longtime property owner) – Expressed opposition to the text amendment, warning that it would open the door to wine shops throughout CBD-5, undermining 50 years of neighborhood efforts to limit liquor uses. Acknowledged Pluck is a good business but concerned about precedent. Responded that conditional use provides some comfort but is not a strong enough protection.
Letters of Support: The applicant noted 41 letters, emails, and petition signatures from homeowners and residents within the block radius. No formal opposition petitions were presented.

Discussion Items

Text Amendment (ZD 014/25): Staff recommended denial, arguing that wine shops are inconsistent with the residential character of CBD-5 and that the commission has consistently denied similar requests in districts where bars are prohibited. Commissioner Whitry and others discussed the possibility of adding conditions specific to CBD-5 (e.g., size limits, no on-site consumption) through the CZO rather than the conditional use process. Commissioner Steag suggested an overlay district. Commissioner Brown argued that conditional use is appropriate because each case can be evaluated on its merits and that wine tasting is part of the wine shop experience. The commission ultimately voted to approve the text amendment against staff recommendation.
Conditional Use (ZD 015/25): Staff recommended denial as a companion to the text amendment. Commissioner Steag initially proposed a motion to approve with provisos limiting the shop to 550 square feet and prohibiting on-site consumption. After withdrawing that motion, Commissioner Gupta moved to approve without additional provisos, seconded by Commissioner Brown. The commission voted to approve.
Subdivision Ratifications: Staff presented a list of subdivisions eligible for administrative approval. Motion to ratify by Commissioner Johnson, second by Commissioner Whitry; unanimously approved.

Key Outcomes

Zoning Docket 014/25: Approved (motion by Commissioner Whitry, second by Commissioner Brown, against staff recommendation). The text amendment will add "wine shop" as a conditional use in the CBD-5 Urban Core Neighborhood Lower Intensity Mixed-Use District.
Zoning Docket 015/25: Approved (motion by Commissioner Gupta, second by Commissioner Brown, against staff recommendation). The conditional use is granted for a wine shop at 722-726 Girod Street, subject to the use standards in Section 20.3.PPP. No additional provisos were added; the applicant indicated willingness to limit the shop to 500 square feet and prohibit on-site consumption.
Subdivision Ratifications: Approved (unanimous). All listed subdivisions were ratified.
Next Steps: The text amendment will now go to the City Council for final consideration (as noted, the applicant plans to request extended operating hours at the council level).

Meeting Transcript

Oh good afternoon everyone. Today is March 11th. It's 144 p.m. Thank you for coming to today's city planning commission regular meeting. First, we will start by uh roll call followed by the formal public hearing of rules and then our regular business. So I'll call roll Commissioner Johnson. Commissioner Lund. Commissioner Josh Gupta. Here. Commissioner Whitry. Here. Commissioner Jordan here. Commissioner Brown. Here. Commissioner Steve. Here. Commissioner Stewart. Here. Okay. So the formal public hearing rules reads as follows. The City Planning Commission. The City Planning Commission has established certain rules governing the procedures to be followed at public hearings. Before speaking, each person shall give their name, address, and state whom he or she is representing. Proponents of the proposal will speak first for a period of 10 minutes. Each speaker shall be allowed a maximum of two minutes. Opponents or other interested parties will speak second for a period of 15 minutes. Each speaker shall be allowed a maximum of two minutes. Proponents will be allowed a period of six minutes for a rebuttal. Each speaker shall be allowed a maximum of two minutes. Opponents will not be allowed to rebut. No material including written matter, photographs, maps, and other items will be accepted by the commission or its staff at any time during this public hearing. This procedure shall be followed followed except at such a time when the presiding officer shall, with the approval of the commission members present, extend such time. Commissioner Whitry will make a motion to adopt those meeting minutes from February 25th. Second, Commissioner Stewart. We have a motion on the floor for adoption from Commissioner Whitry. Seconded by Commissioner Stewart. If there's no further discussion, we will vote our machines. And our meeting minutes are adopted. Zoning Docket 1425 is a request for a text amendment to add wine shop as a conditional use in the CPD5 urban core neighborhood lower intensity mixed use district. This is a reapplication of zoning docket 12619, which was recommended for denial by the City Planning Commission and subsequently denied by the City Council. This request will again allow the applicant to open a wine shop at Pluck Restaurant, which is located at 722 Girard in the CBD 5 districts. Since their initial application, there have been changes made to the CZO, affecting the definition, use standards, and use permissions of wine shops. They are now permitted in more base zone zoning districts than in 2019. However, these base zoning districts typically permit bars and the retail sale of packaged alcohol either through either by rights or through the conditional use process. So this proposal contemplates wine shops as conditional use in the CPD5 district. The CBD 5 district prohibits bars outright and allows the retail sale of package alcohol through the conditional use process. So the city planning commission has consistently recommended denial for wine shops in zoning districts where bars aren't permitted. Staff also contends that approval of this request will undermine the intrinsic nature of this lower intensity CBD5 district, which is catered to residential and neighborhood serving uses. Therefore, staff recommends denial of this request. Thank you.

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