Frisco City Council approved a zoning ordinance amendment during its April 7 meeting that will allow breweries, distilleries and wineries to operate in certain areas. The revised ordinance will allow the businesses in Original Town Commercial District, the Highway District and Industrial District zonings.
Mayor Jeff Cheney noted that residents have said they want those experience-type destinations in the city, according to a study commissioned by Visit Frisco last year.
“The brewpub was one of the top things on the list that was identified, as people [were] going to McKinney and surrounding cities looking for this type of experience,” Cheney said. “Those types [of businesses] were not allowed before this ordinance was crafted. So this will allow us to go out and recruit those types of things.”
A city committee made up of staff from the Planning, Building Inspections, Health and Food Safety, and Fire departments toured breweries in Allen and McKinney late last year to help prepare the ordinance amendment. That committee reviewed operations, safety standards, building design, Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission and building permitting standards as well as parking requirements.
Frisco Planning Manager Anthony Satarino told council the conditional standards are similar to what the city did for brewpubs, with the same distance requirements from churches and schools. That is also consistent with TABC requirements.
Applicants looking to open a brewery, distillery or winery would be required to obtain a specific use permit to operate in the OTC District or Highway District but not in industrial zoned areas of the city. That led council to ask whether zoning standards would still apply in the city’s industrial areas as some of these businesses could operate out of a warehouse solely for manufacturing.
“All of the zoning ordinance standards for design and setbacks and everything like that—all those would apply just as they would to any business operating under the zoning ordinance,” Satarino said.
