Dear People of Savoy (particularly the residents of the Arbours Subdivision):
Let me address some of your concerns.
1. The reason Triptych needs a Special Use Permit, is because Savoy doesn't have a brewing category. It's not because they are trying to circumvent the law. Short of Savoy completely rewriting their liquor license categories (like Danville is trying to do now to entice brewers to go there) this is a faster and easier way to get the process started.
2. Most of you claimed to be all for it, but were just against the location. Did you listen to Anthony when he was speaking about how he tried to get several other locations? Putting it near a residential area wasn't their first choice. However, working with the board of Savoy, they were able to get a suitable location.
3. Many of you were concerned about property values. Also, many of you mentioned how long you had lived in the area. Looking at this list of houses for sale in the area, there aren't that many (according to realtor.com). Why are you concerned with property values if you aren't going to be moving?
4. Some people didn't believe that Triptych would be able to go without televisions. In downtown Champaign: Radio Maria (where I work), Blind Pig, Blind Pig Brewery, and Quality are all bars that don't have TV. I can't speak for Quality, but the other 3 will never have TV. (At the end of the football and basketball seasons, NOT having TV's was actually a drawing point for these bars).
5. Proximity to a neighborhood; If you look up Dogfish Head Craft Brewery, you will notice they are REALLY close to a neighborhood. If you look at that area on realtor.com, you'll notice very few houses for sale there (just like your neighborhood). You may notice that their houses are priced significantly higher than yours. Even with a recession, there aren't too many houses on the market. Dogfish Head is significantly larger than Triptych ever will be. Weyerbacher (in Easton PA) is right in the middle of a neighborhood. There are plenty of homes for sale in Easton, looking at the area around Weyerbacher, there are significantly fewer houses for sale than in the rest of the town. Both of these places are "production" breweries. They make beer, bottle or keg it, and have a tasting room. These two places don't have a huge bar, nor do they pretend to be one. People go there, sample the beer, and purchase it to go. They don't go there to get drunk. (Also, they don't have televisions).
6. Like Anthony said, they don't want to be a bar, they want to be a tasting room. They want to sell most of their beer at offsite locations (like at Radio Maria). They want people to go there, try the beer, then ask "Hey, where can I get this?" Then they can respond "You can purchase it here, or go to Radio Maria, or Friar Tucks, or Senators". Wouldn't it be great if Senators Pub had beer made in Savoy? Think of the money that is staying in the community.
7. Have you been to a winery? When you were there, did you get drunk on the wine? Or did you just taste a few different ones, then purchase some to take home with you, that's the same concept.
8. It's not going to be a neighborhood bar. But if it is, that's great for you. A neighborhood bar is designed for the neighborhood. It's there so you can walk to it, have a beer or 2 or more, then walk home. A neighborhood bar is not the place for people to drive several miles to, then drunkenly get in their car and drive home.
9. Do you all remember when they had their party after they made their goal on kickstarter? It was on Feb. 25. Were there any complaints about the noise? Did you notice it was going on? That's what it'll be like, you won't even notice it.
10. The traffic generated by the brewing operations will be less than the 800+ students at the martial arts academy. (Remember it has 48 seats, if it's full, that's less than 500 people a week). If you are concerned about heavy trucks going in and out of the area, don't worry about it, they will be self distributing, that means that when a bar needs a keg of beer, one of the guys will throw it in the back of their car or pickup truck and take it. It won't be going onto one of those huge Budweiser or Miller Lite trucks that are used by the big distributors.
11. Ah, the smells. Please go to Destihl or Blind Pig Brewing on a day when they are brewing. If you can't go there, talk to one of the Triptych guys to see if you can join them on a brewing day (at their homes, I'm sure they'd love having you). Go smell for yourself how much aromas are going to be created. See if you don't like it. See how much is actually created.
So, to summarize, from looking at some examples like Dogfish Head and Weyerbacher, you can see that having a brewery in your neighborhood isn't a bad thing. If you aren't going to move, property values mean nothing. The additional traffic won't be that much more. It's not going to be a bar. It's not going to be loud. It's not going to be stinky.
If you have any other questions, please ask them. I'd love to address any concerns. I know the guys would answer any questions you have and allay any fears that you might have.
V
