(Okoboji)—The Iowa Supreme Court has issued a ruling in a case involving O’Farrell’s Sisters Restaurant and whether or not the issuance of a liquor license would violate the city of Okoboji’s zoning ordinance.
In its ruling issued late last week, the state’s highest court vacated a previous decision issued by the court of appeals and reversed a district court judgment in the case.
In the ruling, supreme court justices declare the city ordinance does not prohibit a restaurant from serving alcoholic beverages as an accessory use, and the sale and serving of alcoholic beverages does not, by itself, constitute an illegal expansion of the restaurant’s non-conforming use zoning classification.
The ruling goes on to say that the supreme court expresses no opinion whether Butch Parks, who owns O’Farrell Sisters, is automatically entitled to a liquor license or whether the manner he may ultimately operate the restaurant upon issuance of any liquor license would not violate the ordinance as an expansion of a nonconforming use.
