COVINGTON, Ga. -- A potential cigar lounge in downtown Covington appears promising following recent city council meetings.
At its first reading on July 21, the Covington City Council agreed to proceed with adding a zoning amendment to its ordinances that created a special use permit allowing for cigar lounges. This proposal was reinforced through a final reading on Aug. 4 that was approved unanimously.
After consulting with Planning and Development Director Judy Thagard, applicant Carlo Mack presented an idea for a cigar lounge to the council in June. Mack is interested in creating an upscale establishment in the old bank building at 1134 Clark St.
To do so, a zoning ordinance amendment had to be requested, as standards for a cigar lounge are not presently outlined in the city's development codes.
Special use permit
The Covington Planning Commission met on July 8 and recommended approving the amendment with a few changes from the initial proposal. Notably, the commission recommended adding the use as required by a special use permit.
"So, originally, the use was going to be a permitting by right in our TCM [Town Center mixed-use], which is our downtown Covington district, with allowing it for a special use in NM [neighborhood mixed-use] and CM [corridor mixed-use]," Thagard told the council on July 21. "The planning commission did recommend to allow it only in the TCM district, but require it as a special use permit, so nothing went in by right. "
Though Mack is the first applicant and the only one known to be seeking to create a cigar lounge in the city at this time, the planning commission and city council have to keep all future applicants in mind when amending city ordinances.
Mack's vision includes a certain upscale ambiance. Though the council has so far smiled upon Mack's idea, if other business proposals were less favorable, the city now has the means to make that determination. Every applicant, Mack included, will have to apply for the special use permit.
"We've heard from Mr. Mack, we know he's requiring his staff to have a certain dress code, even the patrons, if you will," said Councilman Travis Moore on July 21. "We know what his target market is -- business professionals."
Thagard said the planning commission felt more comfortable exploring this new use knowing it would come back before them and the city for review with each applicant.
Conditions
In addition to the special use permit, the planning commission recommended several conditions, such as a 1,000-foot setback requirement. The ordinance will also include allowed hours, air quality standards, compliance with fire safety regulations and specifications about what can and cannot be sold.
Cigar lounges in the city will be required to have an air filtration system that exceeds 98% efficiency, in addition to meeting the state's requirements around indoor smoking regulation.
"No smoke or odor produced within the cigar lounge shall be discernible at the property line of any adjacent lot," Thagard said on July 21.
Cigar lounges will be permitted to sell some food, but the ordinance makes it clear that the sale will be minimal and that the establishment will not operate as a restaurant. Appetizers, finger foods and desserts, as well as both alcoholic and non alcoholic beverages, may be sold.
The locations will also be instructed not to sell or permit the use of hookah products, vapes/electronic smoking devices, cigarettes or cannabis-related products. Thagard relayed that the planning commission was open to considering adding a hookah lounge use to the ordinances, but wanted to consider it separately from cigar lounges.
Alcohol sales allowance
Since the locations will be permitted to serve alcoholic beverages, an accompanying amendment to the city alcohol ordinances is needed.
"The amendment would add the parameters for the alcohol license and set the limitations in any percentage of sales of alcohol so that the proposed use continues to be an entertainment venue where the focus is on the experience and not a bar/nightclub/tavern type venue where the focus would be on alcohol," Thagard said on July 21.
At the Aug. 4 meeting, the city discussed a first reading of the alcohol ordinance amendment. Thagard recommended restricting alcohol to make up no more than 50% of an establishment's total sales, like the city's restaurants.
But Mack asked the council to consider increasing this allowance.
"On average, in a one-hour timespan, a person will smoke one cigar," Mack said. "Within that same one hour, they'll have two drinks."
Mack added that the price of alcoholic drinks will be higher than the price of cigars, further widening the sales gap.
He asked the council to consider raising the alcohol allowance to 80% of total sales, saying he would not want to have to explore alternate means of income to keep the alcohol proportion lower.
"If you go to any cigar lounge, what you see people doing is they pay to get in...that's not the direction I'm headed in," Mack said. "...I want my customers to come in and feel like they can come in and have a cigar and not be pressuring them to buy something else, not pressuring them for membership."
Additionally, Mack's cigar lounge will only allow those aged 21 and older to enter. At a restaurant, those under 21 still enter, so a proportion of non-alcohol sales comes directly from a wider customer base.
Hearing Mack's pleas, the council voted to raise the portion of alcohol sales higher than 50, but not to Mack's requested 80.
The council unanimously voted to accept the first reading with the condition that 60% of sales be permitted to come from alcohol. One of the council's greatest hesitations in making this proportion any higher was opening the floodgates of other establishments that may be less upscale than Mack's.
"This is a different animal than a restaurant," said Councilwoman Susie Keck. "I would go with 60-40, and then we'll know from the reporting if he's [Mack is] able to make a living at that. And we can always look at it again."
Some feared this might set a precedent for other establishments or raise questions with the restaurant owners. But Keck felt it would not be too difficult to settle any inquiries about the disparity.
"Should we have a restaurant or someone come to us and say, 'Why are you allowing this?' I think it's very easy to explain just like he [Mack] did," Keck said. "People are going to have two drinks and one cigar."
With the ordinance now voted in, Mack, as well as any future applicants, will be required to adhere to the outlined standards.