OCEAN CITY – The details regarding the new OC Brewing Company on 56th Street emerged this week as the Planning and Zoning Commission deliberated a request for a Conditional Use for site plan approval to follow.
On Tuesday evening, a public hearing was held before the Planning and Zoning Commission to consider a request of a Conditional Use in the LC-1, Local Commercial District, to permit a portion of a proposed establishment to engage in brewing.
Concurrently, a preliminary site plan was reviewed of a proposed mixed-use project consisting of the wholesale brewery, restaurant and bar and a retail area.
OC Brewing Company is proposed to be located in an existing 17,400-square-foot building on 56th Street bayside and Coastal Hwy. The building’s most recent use was Sassy Beachwear retail store but dates back to Adkins Hardware in the early 1970s when it was first approved as a Conditional Use in the LC-1 District.
Immediately to the south of the location is the Best Western motel, to the south west is Marisol Condominiums, further west is other residential units and to the north is a commercial shopping center with Johnny’s Pizza as the immediate neighbor.
The restaurant/bar will seat over 200 and the attached gift shop will total about 9,000 square feet and will be located in the front of the building. The brewery will take up about 8,400 square feet and will be located in the back of the property. The brewery will be closed off to the public but a glass window will be in place for the public to view brewing operations.
There are 72 parking spaces on site with handicap parking in the front and primary parking along the south side of the building. Between the mixed-use of a brewery, restaurant/bar and retail space the tabulated amount of required, parking was non-complaint but the Board of Zoning Appeals ruled the required amount of parking for the brewery was in excess, because there will only be a handful of employees for the brewery, and granted a parking waiver.
Mark Fesche, manager of the brewery, who has over 20 years of brewing experience starting as a keg washer moving up to brew master while working at multiple breweries, came before the commission to explain operations.
The brewery will contain eight large brewing tanks and one 31-foot grain silo. It will brew anywhere from 4-6 batches of craft beer a week, as it takes two weeks to ferment a batch, or one tank of beer. One batch equals at least 1,000 gallons of beer each week. Grain is estimated to be delivered by bulk truck once every 10 weeks and air blown into a silo.
Seven gallons of water is required to make one gallon of beer, which totals the use of 7,000 gallons of wastewater used per batch of beer.
Batch waste, which is the leftover grain sediment once the batch is brewed, will be dumped into an outdoor container, which will be picked up promptly by local farmers to be used as feed for livestock.
According to Fesche, odors and noise from brewing operations will not be offensive to neighbors. Outdoor brewery operations, such as filling the silo, will be no louder than a residential air conditioning unit, he said, and the odor is no more offensive then a bakery.
The public hearing was closed with no public comments made.
Commission member Palmer Gillis began deliberation by stating concerns over odors arising from the waste container and suggested a cover for the container as well as implementing a time constraint to have the waste removed. He also pointed out the surrounding neighborhood has changed since Adkins was granted a Conditional Use.
“As far as the conditional use, I think it is a great use and I am looking forward to it. It will be wonderful for the Town of Ocean City,” commission member Peck Miller said.
Miller was concerned over the existing two entrance/exit points on Coastal Highway, and a challenge may arise between parking and deliveries. In having the operation be successful he suggested installing an additional ingress/egress point on the backside of the property to create traffic circulation to avoid having a large truck parked on Coastal Hwy. to make a delivery or have to pull into the parking lot to take up parking that will then have to make a three-point turn or back up onto Coastal Hwy. to exit.
“We should include in the Conditional Use that we are not liable [for odors] … We do not need to be policing it 24/7. You are bringing a new product in town, it is your product, you take care of it, and you can lose this Conditional Use if the odors are too abrasive,” Miller said.
Commission Member Lauren Taylor agreed the Conditional Use has changed due to the changes in the surrounding neighborhood as population has increased, and asked for the site plan to reflect that in providing a buffer from the community.
Commission Chair Pam Buckley furthered 56th Street serves as buffer to the north but landscaping and fencing should be included to buffer neighbors to the south and west.
Miller made a motion to forward a favorable recommendation to the Mayor and City Council to grant Conditional Use for the brewery in the LC-1 District based on the conditions; offensive odors will be controlled, including having the waste container covered and having all waste removed the day of brewing. As well as, the use and treatment of wastewater is to be in compliance with Ocean City Wastewater and Maryland Department of Environment requirements.
A complete site plan, including a landscaping design is to return for approval. The design was presented in its preliminary stage and has not received a full staff review with comments. The commission strongly suggested surrounding landscaping and fencing to block the site of operations from surrounding residents, and adding a second ingress/egress point to improve flow of traffic for deliveries.
“I would really recommend you work on a second ingress/egress,” Miller said.
According to Josh Shores of OC Brewing Company, the company started as a joint collaboration between himself and Fesche. The bar will have over 12 taps of OC Brewing Company’s craft brews ranging from light lagers to high gravity dark beers to appeal to almost every taste bud.
The company will be wholesaling kegs throughout the State of Maryland and surrounding states, as well as selling their craft beer by the can, growlers, and 22 oz. bombers.
The restaurant will serve many homemade brewpub favorites from gourmet pizza and flatbreads to smash burgers, their signature egg rolls, house sausage and brats, and hearty pot pies.
The gift shop will sell OC Brewing Company’s craft beer, along with specialty apparel and memorabilia.
OC Brewing Company plans on being open by Spingfest weekend on May 1. The brewery and restaurant are officially in the works with the tanks and silo being delivered later in the month.
“We are full steam ahead,” Shores said.
The brewery will be operated during normal daytime business hours, and as of right now the restaurant/bar will be open from 11 a.m.-2 a.m., however breakfast is being debated with the restaurant opening at 6 a.m.