Let the brewery serve food | Letter

Published 8:44 pm Monday, October 29, 2012

Hey folks, we have a cool new enterprise on Orcas: the Island Hoppin’ Brewery.  We’ve been twice. The first time was when John from Maple Rock Farms served his scrumptious pizza to an exuberant crowd of mostly locals, and another time was with our out-of-town friend on a quiet, relaxed mid-week visit.

The hope for many was to have pizza night a regular affair. However, it appears that the county’s industrial zoning precludes “restaurants” in the area.  Typically one of the major hurdles to having food uses is insufficient parking.  However, it’s our understanding that this problem is being addressed with purchase of a 1.5-acre vacant lot contiguous with the brewery property which can easily accommodate any amount of required parking.

I can understand the desire to have most restaurants located in the heart of town, but it’s our hope that the county will find a solution to the “food” issue facing the brewery and its patrons.

The brewery can easily become an off-island draw, which would also benefit in-town restaurants, as tourists and visitors spend time on the island.

We feel fortunate that these young entrepreneurs selected Orcas to build and operate their microbrewery.

Marguerite and Greg Stafford

Orcas Island