
{"id":19968,"date":"2011-07-28T09:58:12","date_gmt":"2011-07-28T13:58:12","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.carrborocitizen.com\/main\/?p=19968"},"modified":"2011-07-28T09:58:12","modified_gmt":"2011-07-28T13:58:12","slug":"owners-in-dispute-over-johnny%e2%80%99s-future","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ibiblio.org\/carrborocitizen\/main\/2011\/07\/28\/owners-in-dispute-over-johnny%e2%80%99s-future\/","title":{"rendered":"Owners in dispute over Johnny\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s future"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>By Susan Dickson<br \/>\n<\/strong><em>Staff Writer<\/em><\/p>\n<p>While one owner of the Johnny\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s property says she plans to reopen the business, another is saying the business isn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t hers to reopen \u00e2\u20ac\u201c and that zoning issues could prevent her from doing so. <\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153I own the store,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d Brian Plaster said. \u00e2\u20ac\u0153That whole thing with Johnny\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s is all mine.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>Plaster said property co-owner Jan Halle helped him get the loan to purchase the 901 W. Main St. property, and that she owns 69 percent of the property \u00e2\u20ac\u201c not the business. <\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153She has nothing to do with the business,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d he said. \u00e2\u20ac\u0153I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m the one that created the business for what it is.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d <\/p>\n<p>The local store, coffee shop, music venue and community gathering place closed on June 23 and has yet to reopen. Plaster and Halle parted ways in mid-June, and Halle has said she plans to reopen Johnny\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s \u00e2\u20ac\u0153bigger than it was, with the same community flavor,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d by September. <\/p>\n<p>Halle said several potential business partners have made proposals regarding the business. <\/p>\n<p>Last week, Carrboro Greenspace members hosted a potluck at Johnny\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s for the community to come together to propose ideas for the space, and most of those in attendance said they would like to see Johnny\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s reopened as the same business it was prior to closing.<\/p>\n<p>But according to Plaster, that might not be so easy. He said he closed the business because he ran into issues with noise ordinances and parking as Johnny\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s became a popular gathering spot. <\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153That\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s why we stopped having live music,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d he said. \u00e2\u20ac\u0153We kept getting in trouble with the police.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d <\/p>\n<p>Plaster was also worried that someone would get hurt crossing West Main Street, and said he knew of multiple accidents involving Johnny\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s customers. <\/p>\n<p>He said that while the business was \u00e2\u20ac\u0153slamming busy,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d he ran into zoning issues as the business morphed from a retail shop into more of a coffee shop and bar. <\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153We were serving coffee and we had beer on tap,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d he said, adding that the property wasn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t zoned as a music venue or bar. <\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t believe the town would even give anyone a business permit todo what I was doing. \u00e2\u20ac\u00a6 It just needs to simply be a commercial space.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n<p>Trish McGuire, planning director with the Town of Carrboro, said the property is zoned residential, but that Johnny\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s had been permitted to continue operating there. <\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153The business that was operating there for many years was a legally non-conforming business,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d she said. \u00e2\u20ac\u0153That\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s something that Brian worked through in communication with zoning.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d <\/p>\n<p>The Johnny\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s that occupied the space for many years \u00e2\u20ac\u201c a bait and tackle shop \u00e2\u20ac\u201c was at one time in line with the zoning for the property, but the zoning changed to residential a number of years ago, McGuire said. <\/p>\n<p>Because the business predated the zoning change, it was allowed to continue operating with previously approved uses under provisions of the zoning ordinance. <\/p>\n<p>If the business doesn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t close for more than 12 months, then the legal nonconformity continues, McGuire said. <\/p>\n<p>However, a different type of business might not be allowed to operate in the space, she said. <\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153Things are a matter of degree, and you have to evaluate them,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d she said. \u00e2\u20ac\u0153There\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s not a hard-and-fast answer there.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d <\/p>\n<p>But, she added, \u00e2\u20ac\u0153There is a point beyond which a business wouldn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t be considered.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d A bar is not one of the legal, non-conforming uses for the property, she said.<\/p>\n<p>According to McGuire, the town had received multiple comments from concerned residents regarding Johnny\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s.<br \/>\nPlaster said that because of all the complaints and issues, he had hoped to sell the property and business, and that a local business had made an offer, but that Halle backed out of the deal. <\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153If [Halle] wants to own it and continue without me as a partner, then she has to buy me out,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d he said. \u00e2\u20ac\u0153I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve worked very hard to make Johnny\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s what it is.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d <\/p>\n<p>\u00e2\u20ac\u0153She just told me that she wasn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t going to pay me for the business,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d Plaster added. \u00e2\u20ac\u0153At this point, my attorney is handling it.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d <\/p>\n<p>Halle could not be reached for comment. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>While one owner of the Johnny\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s property says she plans to reopen the business, another is saying the business isn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t hers to reopen \u00e2\u20ac\u201c and that zoning issues could prevent her from doing so. 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