Lost in Transit, a new restaurant and bar, will be opening at 43 Station St., the space formerly occupied by The Blue Light. The Blue Light was before the beer board many times and for many violations during the couple of years it was open and eventually lost its license to sell beer.
Jason Bowers, owner of the new business, said there will be shifting priorities in that space. Lost in Transit will be a “cool bar and a nice restaurant.” All servers will be trained in alcohol sales by the Tennessee Alcoholic Beverage Commission. (TABC), said Mr. Bowers. There will be licensed security guards at every door, and the age is limited to 21 and older after 9 p.m.
It is a large space of 16,000 square feet, but he said he is not anticipating “packing it up.”
Beer Board Member Ron Smith told him that the board is very familiar with that address and its history of violations and rowdy behavior including people climbing over railings to get in the back doors. Mr. Bowers responded, “It’s a matter of the business that you run. People don’t generally climb in windows at a restaurant,” he said.
Mr. Bowers also owns The Bitter Alibi bar and restaurant at 825 Houston St. that has been open for 10 years.
Lost in Transit was given a consumer and carry-out beer license with a unanimous vote of approval.
Jacob Mundy and Tyler Brett Allen are opening a second restaurant/bar. The new Outpost Bar and Restaurant will be at 342 Main St., where Heaven and Ale Brewing was previously located.
The two also own and operate the Base Camp at 346 Frazier Ave. in North Chattanooga that has been open for six years.
When applying for a beer license for the Base Camp, they told the board that the food will be similar to what is served at Base Camp but this location will have a full bar staffed with all TABC-trained servers.
The occupancy level for the restaurant/bar is 113 including employees. Hours will be from 4-10 p.m. week days, from 4-11 p.m. on Friday and Saturday and from 4-9 p.m. on Sundays.
There is an outdoor patio seating area and the owners were warned to maintain control outside and to be considerate of the neighbors. The beer board approved a consumer/carry-out beer permit for the business.
Eight Mapco Express stores in Chattanooga have new owners, Marvin and Dustin Hewatt. Five of those locations, which have changed ownership, were approved for a carry-out beer license at the meeting of the beer board on Thursday. The locations of those stores are 6120 Highway 58, 9101 Lee Highway, 8126 E. Brainerd Road, 1933 Hamill Road and 6200 Lee Highway. Three more stores were bought by the Hewatts. A special beer board meeting will be held on Thursday, Nov. 30, to hear those applications. Until they are permitted the stores can be open but will not be allowed to sell beer.
Another convenience/gas store has also changed ownership, which requires a new beer license. The Raceway located at 2528 Broad St. was approved for a carry-out permit. That store has been open 12-15 years, said new owner Saurin Patel. The new store owners are a franchisee of the Raceway stores.