This is a request for a special review for the location of an all-beverage license with gaming and an outdoor patio for an existing location approved for a beer and wine license with gaming and a patio at 501 Hilltop Road on a 37,750 square foot parcel of land in a Highway Commercial (HC) zone. The subject property is legally described as Lots 2B and 2C, Block 1, Dicono Subdivision. The location will require a waiver of the 600 foot separation from this location and the Bench Elementary School at 505 Milton Road. The Zoning Commission conducted a public hearing on March 6, 2012, and is forwarding a recommendation of conditional approval and a waiver of the 600 foot separation to Bench Elementary School on a 4-0 vote.

The Planning Division reviewed the application and recommended conditional approval and waiver of the 600 foot separation to Bench Elementary School. The Zoning Commission concurred with this recommendation. Before a recommendation of approval or conditional approval can be made, each special review request must demonstrate conformance with three primary criteria: 1) the application complies with all parts of the Unified Zoning Regulations, 2) the application is consistent with the objectives and purposes of the Unified Zoning Regulations and the 2008 Growth Policy, and 3) is compatible with surrounding land uses and is otherwise screened and separated from adjacent land to minimize adverse impacts. This application conforms to the first criteria, in so far that it meets required setbacks and landscaping and does not exceed maximum lot coverage.  The location is in one of the zoning districts that allow an all beverage license with gaming by special review approval. The application is conforming to the purposes of the regulations and the 2008 Growth Policy. The application has received a letter of support from a surrounding property owner, Steve Nitz at 513 Hilltop Road, Executive Property Services.  This is an opportunity for the owner to offer a wider beverage selection to existing customers. The gaming and outdoor patio have been previously approved and will not change if this new type of alcoholic beverage license is located in the existing restaurant.

The Zoning Commission is recommending conditions for this special review based on the approval criteria for special review uses. The recommended conditions below address lighting, safety, noise, and landscaping.

1. The special review approval shall be limited to Lots 2B and 2C, Block 1, Dicono Subdivision generally located at 501 Hilltop Road. 
2. Any expansion of the proposed patio, building, building occupancy or parking lot greater than 10 percent of existing conditions will require an additional special review approval.
3. The owner is allowed to have background music and un-amplified live outdoor entertainment on the outdoor patio lounge. Background music is amplified music not audible beyond the outdoor patio lounge.
4. A solid waste storage area shall be enclosed on three (3) sides by a sight-obscuring fence or wall and by a sight-obscuring gate on the remaining side. This enclosure shall be constructed of normal fencing materials. No chain link or wire fencing will be used for sight-obscuring enclosure.
5. These conditions of special review approval shall run with the land described in this authorization and shall apply to all current and subsequent owners, operators, managers, lease holders, heirs and assigns. 
6. The proposed development shall comply with all other limitations of Section 27-613 of the Unified Zoning Regulations concerning special review uses, and all other City of Billings regulations and ordinances that apply.

There should be increased fee revenue to the city when an all beverage license is issued for this location.

This is a request for a special review to allow the replacement of an existing beer & wine license with gaming and an outdoor patio with an all-beverage license at an existing restaurant and casino, The Vig Alehouse and Casino, at 501 Hilltop Road. The property is zoned HC and is generally located on the north side of Hilltop Road just east of the Lake Elmo Drive overpass. There is a manufactured home park to the northwest and offices to the northeast. Access to the site is from the private access road off Hilltop Road. Property to the west is Community Commercial (CC) and to the south is HC, and both are developed for self storage warehouses. In 1997, this location was approved for the existing beer and wine license with gaming by City Council approval of Special Review #611. A waiver of the 600 foot separation distance to Bench Elementary School was not required because the application did not include the lot to the north that is the parking lot for the casino. Three years after the approval for this location, another application to add a liquor license and gaming at the gas station and convenience store to the east was denied since the City Council at that time chose not to waive the 600 foot separation distance to Bench Elementary. In 2010, the current owner applied for a special review to add an outdoor patio and requested a waiver of the 600-foot separation to Bench Elementary School on Milton Lane. The special review was conditionally granted by the City Council on August 23, 2010.   

The Unified Zoning Regulations requiring a 600 foot separation were modified by the City Council in 2002 to provide greater clarity on when a waiver may be considered. The current regulations allow the City Council to consider a waiver if it finds a physical barrier separates the uses such as an arterial street with no signalized pedestrian crossing, a building or buildings entirely obstructs the view of the location and there is no direct physical access between the uses. In this instance, there are substantial physical barriers between this use and the elementary school, there are buildings that entirely obstruct the view of this location from the school and there is no direct physical access between the sites. The Planning staff recommended a waiver of the 600 foot separation distance to Bench Elementary School at 505 Milton Road and the Zoning Commission concurred. 

The Zoning Commission conducted a public hearing on March 6, 2012, and received testimony from the applicant, Michael Schmechel, owner of The Vig Alehouse and Casino. No other testimony was received. The Zoning Commission is forwarding a recommendation of conditional approval and waiver of the 600 foot separation on a 4-0 vote.

The consistency with adopted plans and policies is discussed in the Alternatives Analyzed section above.