ThisWeek CW 08/14/2014

http://www.thisweeknews.com/content/stories/canalwinchester/news/2014/08/11/relocating-moose-lodge-seeks-fall-liquor-permits.html

Moose Lodge 1245 is hoping to move from Whitehall to Groveport later this year and already has city council approval to begin a community service project to clear litter from Groveport city parks.

It has also filed petitions with the Franklin County Board of Elections seeking to put two liquor options on the Nov. 4 ballot. One would allow the sale of liquor on weekdays; the other would allow the sale of liquor between 10 a.m. and midnight on Sundays.

The elections board was scheduled to decide by Aug. 18 whether the petitions contain enough valid signatures to put the options on the ballot.

Lodge Governor Dennis Smith told Groveport City Council July 28 that Moose Lodge 1245 has sold its prior location on Noe-Bixby Road in Columbus and wants to move into a building at 220 Main St., in Groveport. That building once housed a pharmacy and was most recently used as a church, he said.

According to Smith, who grew up in Groveport, the building at 220 Main St. would be a good fit for the lodge.

“We like the building and the location,” he said of the proposed Groveport site.

Smith said the lodge boasts about 700 members, and is currently operating out of Gahanna Moose Lodge 2463, 335 W. Johnstown Road.

Moose Lodge 1245 would operate as a private club, he said, and wants to continue offering its members the opportunity to purchase alcohol for consumption on site. That’s why the organization is seeking the two liquor options.

“According to the Division of Liquor Control, they’ll have to get on the ballot,” Groveport Law Director Kevin Shannon said. “This will require them getting enough valid signatures for their petitions to be certified, then Precinct A will vote on it in November.”

Councilman Ed Rarey has, so far, been the only vocal opponent to the lodge, primarily because of concerns about parking and traffic issues.