7/3/25 Chattanooga City Beer Board Meeting

Chattanooga City Beer Board – Regular Meeting 7/3/25

📅 July 3, 2025 | ⏰ 8:07–~9:45 AM

0. Housekeeping | Sign-in & Rules (8:07)

  • Meeting called to order; sign-in + devices reminder; podium use + state name on record.

1. Minutes (8:44)

  • ✅ Approved June 18, 2025 minutes (noted agenda typo showed Feb 20). (9:07)

2. Oath of Witnesses (9:19)

  • All speakers sworn by staff before testimony.

3. Regulatory Status & Motions (11:02–14:43)

  • Golf business (Thomas Smith) – pending Building approval (add handrails to porch).
    • 🗳️ Motion: Return to Regulatory (no further board appearance needed once Building signs off) → APPROVED (roll call unanimous). (12:11)
  • London Calling (John Carlo Fernandez) – pending Building approval.
    • 🗳️ Motion: Return to Regulatory (no further board appearance needed once Building signs off) → APPROVED (roll call unanimous). (14:16)

4. Beer & Temporary Event Permits – Approved by Regulatory (read into record) (14:50)

  • TE-87 Smart Music Project – Firefly Twilight Market
  • TE-89 Smart Music – Hot as Hades
  • TE-91 Rise Chattanooga – Pops on the River
  • Beer-1322 100 Foods 6 LLC d/b/a Chicken
  • Beer-1335 Thirsty Elephants LLC d/b/a Yummy Thai Restaurant & Bar
  • Beer-1346 3 Gen Inc. d/b/a Beef O’Brady’s
  • Beer-1349 Los Mitch (DBA per record)

Note: Staff earlier indicated all new apps approved except Nos. 1324 and 1320 (the two above sent back to Regulatory).

5. Violations & Payments (16:25)

  • Nathan Bedford violation: $750 fine paid; case considered closed for payment.
    • Next step: must submit new application; board requested staff note completion in minutes once received.

6. Process & Compliance Discussion (17:46–27:32)

  • Ownership disclosure on permits: All owners with ≥5% must be listed. Applications are under oath; failures noted in recent cases.
  • Follow-up/quality control: Board wants better visibility when fines paid & when corrective filings completed.
  • Sales & Use Tax (State): Distributor raised need for Tennessee Sales & Use certificate (or state nonprofit exemption). Board noted that’s a state requirement, not part of beer permit review; cannot hold city permits for state tax setup.
  • Distributor compliance (Eddie Davis, Tri-Star Beverage):
    • If revoked → no sales.
    • If suspended → distributor can still deliver; retailers must not sell during suspension.
    • If no license → no sales.
    • Distributors use city delinquency notices to pause deliveries; communication with staff (Bertha) is regular.
  • Competitors: Unknown if all distributors follow the same practice; some no longer attend meetings.

7. Public Comment (17:35, 21:06)

  • None from the public; board continued discussion.

8. Adjournment (31:40)

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