The Paramount City Council this week approved the introduction (sometimes called a first reading) of a zoning text amendment to allow the manufacturing of alcohol in both light and heavy manufacturing areas of town, as well as in commercial areas.
The issue will have to come back to the council for approval and the zoning text amedment will have to be published before it becomes city law.
According to the staff presentation to the council, alcoholic beverage consumers are moving away from big name brands and buying more locally created, craft beverages.
According to the presentation, manufacturers of craft alchol would have to get a conditional use permit, be subject to Public Safety/Sheriff’s Departmentt review, would only authorize small-scale breweries or craft distilleries and the city engineer would have to “review and approve a waste water plan.”
The staff report by Planning Director John Carver, and Assistant Planning Director John King said, ” With a number of microbrewery businesses opening in outlying cities such as Long Beach, Torrance, and Anaheim and nearing market saturation in those areas, brewery owners and investors are turning their attention to underserved cities. In fact, several microbrewery operators have approached Planning Department staff in recent months with inquiries.”
