License Law Group Helps Apothecary Lounge Navigate Obscure Zoning Challenge to Secure Liquor License
We are proud to have assisted the Apothecary Lounge team with lease negotiations, contractor agreements, and an obscure zoning issue that rarely comes up in Chicago licensing. Their website is gorgeous, and the cocktails and food look phenomenal. Apothecary Lounge is a craft cocktail bar with a pharmacy-meets-speakeasy concept opening late April at 3242 N. Clark Street in Lakeview.
The property sits in a B3 zoning district, and Section 4-60-020(b) of the Chicago Municipal Code prohibits issuing a license for on-premises alcohol sales (unless the establishment is a restaurant) when another licensed liquor seller is located within 400 feet. Because Apothecary Lounge is licensed as a tavern, the restaurant exception did not apply. This is one of the more obscure provisions in Chicago's code. It's technically a zoning restriction buried in the licensing chapter, and many aldermen are not even aware it exists. We resolved the issue by filing a zoning amendment to change the zoning classification at the address, clearing the path for the license. Congratulations to the entire Apothecary Lounge team.
Apothecary Lounge is a new craft cocktail bar opening at 3242 N. Clark Street in Chicago's Lakeview neighborhood. The concept blends the warmth and intimacy of a speakeasy with the charm of a vintage pharmacy. License Law Group assisted with lease negotiations, contractor agreements, and a zoning amendment required to overcome a little-known restriction in Section 4-60-020(b) of the Chicago Municipal Code.