A new micro-brewery in the Walkerville area is a step closer to reality.
On Tuesday, the city's planning committee changed the zoning to allow the micro-brewery Chapter Two Brewing Company its proposed location at the southeast corner of Walker Rd. and Edna St.
Co-owner Tom Gelinas tells AM800 News the brewery hugs the border of two communities in the middle of a resurgence.
"It's an area where there's a lot of development, it's within walking distance of several residents," he says. "It's an extension of Walkerville more or less and an extension of Ford City if you go down Edna St."
Gelinas says the brewery will be a part of a diverse group of businesses housed in the same building.
"It's got a printing unit, it's got a cabinet shop, its got a lot of life in that building," says Gelinas. "In fact, just in that building alone, it's like a economic development in the area with all the businesses that are percolating."
Partner Terry Dube says after a zoning adjustment, and close to two-years of planning, he's excited to get over the final hurdle.
"In the conversations we had with the city they asked us to make this minor adjustment, we've done that," says Dube. "We had to source a custom-built stainless-system from Portland, Or., which is the epicenter of craft-beers in America."
The issue still has to go to council for final approval, and if approved, the owners would like to have the micro-brewery open by the holidays. Ward 4 Councillor Chris Holt is the brewery's third-partner.
— with files from AM800's Gord Bacon