Littleton is considering allowing for micro-breweries, micro-distilleries and limited wineries in the town outside of the limits of industrial zoning.
Littleton Community Development Director Glen Van Nimwegen said residents and potential business owners have expressed interests in breweries, distilleries and wineries opening in downtown Littleton. The problem is the city has an old code and such establishments are relegated to the industrial centers because they were mainly considered manufacturing businesses.
“This is kind of a recent phenomena, micro-breweries and micro-distilleries, and we address them but more as large-scale breweries or distilleries,” Van Nimwegen said. “Our code doesn’t address it differently because of its scale.”
Whereas Englewood, which recently passed changes to its code allowing for the alcohol-based businesses, determined the size of a brewery, distillery or winery based on square feet, Van Nimwegen said the city is looking at defining it along the lines of state law, so micro-breweries would produce 300,000 gallons or less per year, craft wineries would produce no more than 100,000 gallons of wine per year and micro-distilleries would be capped at 50,000 gallons per year. Van Nimwegen said the city could still base the code on square feet; city staff is still in the beginning stages of the process.
He said putting micro-distilleries into existing space might pose a problem because of fire code issues.
“When you share walls with another use there’s some fire ratings that could come up depending on how much alcohol they have in one container,” he said. “I think we’ll allow it with some conditions.”
He said city council has been supportive of the changes after the city received requests from some potential business owners.
“I think they (council) see it as a potentially good thing for our downtown. It adds to people walking around and most of these places will have a tasting room, so I think it overall fits with our other uses downtown,” he said.
But Littleton’s change of code comes a bit too late for one micro-distillery owner. Ryan White of Devil’s Head Distillery — which will produce gin, vodka and aquavit, a Scandinavian spirit — is looking to open a 3,500-square-foot location in Englewood because it changed its code more quickly.
“Englewood beat Littleton to the punch,” White said. “It was just in the last few months that Littleton listened to me regarding the changes, whereas Englewood has been working on it for the past six months.”
John Cowperthwaite, whose winery business is called Black Arts Cellars, said he is considering both cities, but he talked to his friend, Littleton Mayor Debbie Brinkman, and thinks that’s helped to get things moving. He said ideally he would set up shop in Littleton. He said he doesn’t want to sign a three-year lease in Englewood if he can begin locating in Littleton in December.
Van Nimwegen said there’s no timeline set for pushing the ordinance further, but city staff hopes to have it before council in October or November. First, staff has to draft an amended code and bring it before the planning commission.
Clayton Woullard: 303-954-2671 or cwoullard@denverpost.com
