BY DANIEL SCHMIDT
THE OBSERVER
AUBURN — A vote on a moratorium on new lounges in the heart of downtown Auburn was postponed until October, with Auburn City Council members citing a need to further engage with local business owners and other stakeholders before making a decision.
That vote, which was originally supposed to be held at the Sept. 15 meeting, was rescheduled for Oct. 6.
If approved in October, that ordinance would declare a temporary moratorium on approving any new lounges in three downtown zoning districts: the Urban Core, Urban Neighborhood-East and Urban Neighborhood-West.
Under the city’s current zoning ordinance, a lounge is defined as any business that sells alcoholic beverages but does not qualify as a restaurant or private club.
There are already a significant number of them clustered in or near downtown, according to city staff.
The original ordinance was brought forward after the Auburn Public Safety Department reported a disproportionately high number of calls for service connected to activity around downtown lounges compared to lounges elsewhere in Auburn.
City officials said data shows the concentration of these businesses is affecting the health, safety and welfare of residents.
The moratorium is intended to buy city staff time to study the problem and bring potential solutions back to the council before any additional lounges come up for review.
According to documents included as part of Tuesday night’s meeting, the moratorium takes effect immediately and will run through March 3, 2027, unless the council either votes to rescind it before then or extend it.
The pause does not touch existing businesses. Lounges already operating in the affected districts can continue operating as they currently do since the moratorium only blocks the consideration and approval of new lounges during the roughly six-month period.
Addressing that concern is where the council’s second major ordinance action of the meeting came into play.
The postponement came as the council approved a $349,154 professional services agreement with South Carolina-based law firm White Smith Cousino, or WSC, to draft a comprehensive update to the city’s zoning ordinance.
According to city staff, that zoning ordinance rewrite is expected to take roughly two years to complete.
According to a memo from Planning Director Justice Wahid Cotton, the ordinance is overdue for a significant overhaul to better reflect current growth trends, desired development patterns and modern zoning practices and to align more closely with the city’s future land use plan.
The partnership between the city of Auburn and WSC is not new.
The city began working with the firm in late 2025 and signed a preliminary agreement this past February, during which the firm held virtual workshops and on-site meetings with staff to learn about the city’s development standards and concerns.
Staff recommended the firm as its partner going forward, citing WSC’s specialty in code rewrites across the Southeast and its experience working in college towns and in Alabama.
The full rewrite is expected to take more than 24 months. WSC’s scope includes drafting a code assessment for staff review, working with internal and external stakeholders, facilitating public engagement meetings, auditing the ordinance for internal conflicts and preparing the final draft.
The firm’s early priorities tie directly back to the council’s efforts to manage growth in and around downtown Auburn.
WSC is set to focus first on the Urban Core and Urban Neighborhood-West districts to respond to an existing moratorium the council adopted in November 2025 (Ordinance No. 3557), which affected the construction of multi-unit developments and private dormitories in those areas.
The firm will also assist staff with the newly approved lounge moratorium and take up zoning updates for other districts once the moratoriums are lifted.
Until the zoning ordinance rewrite is complete, planning staff will continue their regular workload, including Planning Commission and zoning board cases, subdivision plats, sign permits and more, while collaborating with WSC.
In other business, the council:
Approved a special events retail alcohol beverage license to Aramark Educational Services, which is operating as Plainsman Park at 351 S. Donahue Drive.
Renewed a five-year public safety contract with Auburn University at an FY27 annual rate of nearly $6.7 million.
Awarded a $75,600 contract to Floyd Service Company to install lighting for the Yarbrough Tennis Center’s outdoor courts.
Approved a $222,795 purchase of 1,401 stream and wetland mitigation credits from Westervelt Ecological Services, LLC for the Yarbrough Farms Boulevard Extension.
Accepted public right-of-way easements from Clayton Group Properties at the southern extension of Mimms Trail.
Accepted right-of-way easements from Wire and Cox Development at the northeast corner of Black Swann Road and Cox Road.
Accepted public utility, lighting and sidewalk easements from Lovely Investments and Trident Properties at 144 and 150 S. Ross St.
Accepted a temporary construction easement from Owens Family Partnership and authorized $87,500 in compensation as part of the North Donahue Drive Widening Project.
Made two appointments to the Greenspace Advisory Board. Those terms begin upon appointment and end on Aug. 7, 2030.
Reappointed both Dave DeBaets and Matthew Clegg to the Industrial Development Board. Their terms begin on Oct. 10 and end on Oct. 9, 2032.
Reappointed Cynthia Boyd to the Lee County Youth Development Center Board of Directors. Her term begins on Oct. 1 and ends on Sept. 30, 2030.
Gave second reading and final approval to amendments to the FY2026 and FY2027 biennial budget.
Annexed 3.39 acres at 744 Lee Road 008 (Cotton Valley Lane) as part of the Gaither annexation.
Annexed 0.17 acres at 1400 N. College St. in the Youth for Christ annexation.
Rezoned 1.35 acres at 1400 N. College St. from rural and development district housing to a comprehensive development district at the request of Youth for Christ.
Denied a conditional use allowing Charred Oak Hemp to operate as a consumable hemp products retailer at 2900 E. University Drive, Suites 120 and 125.
Approved a conditional use allowing Dixie Electric Cooperative to operate offices, a warehouse and maintenance shop, contractor storage yard and fuel center at 2901 Beehive Road.
Approved a conditional use for a 24-unit performance residential development known as the Old Stage Road MUD at 621 Old Stage Road.
Denied a conditional use allowing Tiger Spirits Hemp – South College to operate as a consumable hemp products retailer at 2328 S. College St.
Vacated the Prosper at Plainsman Lake sewer easement at 1803 Kenai Pass at the request of Bison Trust.
Accepted a statutory warranty deed from Owens Family Partnership and approved $980,000 in compensation for Phase I of the North Donahue Drive Widening Project.
Awarded a $344,656 contract to Foresite Group for the Yarbrough Farms Boulevard Extension Project.
