COVINGTON, Ga. — The Covington City Council approved a rezoning request that will allow for a 12,000 square-foot liquor store to be built at the intersection of Eagle Drive and Jackson Highway.

At the Oct. 20 meeting, Judy Thagard, the city’s director of planning and development, shared that when the property was initially annexed into the city under a previous case in 2021, specific restrictions were placed on it about what could and could not be built. 

Though that project never came to fruition, the conditions remain in place, restricting possibilities for the site. 

The conditions include a ban on having any drive-thru alcohol sales. As the applicant is seeking to build a liquor store, this condition would have to be lifted to move forward with the development.

Thagard said that to remove conditions, an applicant must initiate a rezoning request with the city council. Though the parcel is currently zoned as corridor mixed-use (CM), and this is the zoning the applicant wishes to keep, undertaking a rezoning to go from CM to CM will erase the conditions.

The complications associated with this parcel have deterred potential applicants—until now.

“Staff has received numerous calls about the property, but once we go through the restrictions, it limits not only the site plan, but it limits certain businesses where it only allows certain businesses on the property,” Thagard said. “So once we go through those items with someone calling about the property, we’ve not had anyone until now move forward with trying to amend the zoning.”

Brent Fisher is the applicant representing the developer. He explained that the person behind this project wants to build a grocery store, but determined that income from a liquor store would be more reliable. 

Having said that, the developer remains open to creating an adjacent high-end grocery store in the future, should the liquor store be a successful venture.

“One of our members’ original plan was he wanted a grocery store. He still does,” Fisher said. “But the man with the money that’s representing him says, ‘I don’t know that you can make any money with a grocery store.’ He said, ‘We’ll build a liquor store. I know how to make money with that, and we’ll save this little spot over here, and if you can make that [the liquor store] work, then you can have your grocery store if you still want to do that.’”

Fisher also explained that the venture is a family affair.

Though the people behind the business idea remained unnamed, Fisher said that they own multiple stores already and like to open stores for their younger family members to run.

“They’ve done one in Rockmart, and I’ve met that couple that owns it and runs it and has kids, and they’re very involved,” Fisher said. “...They’re very community-minded, very honorable folks.”

The council approved the rezoning request unanimously, but voiced particular favor for the possible future grocery store accompaniment.

“I really like the idea of an upscale grocery store,” said Councilwoman Charika Davis. “We could really use a Whole Foods, Trader Joe's, Sprouts. Liquor stores—we have like, what, five or six here already? And I understand that, you know, grocery stores, you stated pretty much don't make money, but if you get the liquor store, I think you all should strongly consider the upscale grocery store, cause you will be making a lot of money off the liquor store.”