GREENFIELD — City officials have given initial approval to a developer looking to build a liquor store on the north side of Greenfield.
Representatives from Crown Liquors, a company operating 28 stores across central Indiana, presented a plan to build a new store at 2222 N. State St. in Greenfield at the Greenfield Plan Commission meeting this week.
Currently, Crown Liquors operates one local store attached to the Speedway gas station, 2242 N. State St. The current store is less than 100 feet north of the company’s proposed new location.
The company is renting the storefront, formerly named Lucky Liquors, from Speedway; representatives plan to close that store if the new location receives approval.
The plan commission approved preliminary building plans for the site, but the development is contingent on approval from the Greenfield Board of Zoning Appeals, which will review building and site plans at its meeting Thursday.
The proposal will go before the Greenfield Board of Zoning Appeals at 7 p.m. Thursday in city hall, 10 S. State St.
City planning director Joanie Fitzwater said she’s pleased to see interest in the site. The barn sitting on the property hasn’t been used in years and would likely continue to deteriorate in coming years, she said.
County records show Eastside Development purchased the property in 2007 for about $400,000.
Plans include a one-story, 5,000-square-foot store with another 2,550-square-foot space available for lease to another retailer. The site would have 24 parking spaces and a driveway off State Street would need to be built to give drivers access to the parking lot.
Evergreen trees and shrubs would also be planted around the building, and the old barn sitting on the property would be demolished if plans move forward. Site plans show a small sign would be placed on the east side of the building façade, facing drivers on State Street. A larger sign would be placed on the south side of the building toward the parking lot area.
Chad Thompson, project manager for Eastside Development Group, a company overseeing construction, said the site received approval from the Indiana Department of Transportation to build an entrance to the facility off State Street.
Although she doesn’t anticipate the store seeing an unmanageable amount of traffic, exiting drivers turning left onto State Street might have trouble during rush hour traffic, said City engineer Karla Vincent, who also sits on the plan commission.
That could create traffic jams during rush hour, she said.
