Wine Seller Aims to Open in Old TJ's Location

Before moving forward with plans to open a wine store in New Lenox, a business owner got the buzz of the Village Board to see if there would be support for granting a liquor license.

Owner Srinivas Gaddam said he wants to open an upscale wine store called Cork N Carry in the location of the old TJ's Bar and Grill. Mayor Tim Baldermann asked him to speak to the board Monday night to answer any questions they might have about his plans. Baldermann said this would help gague whether there were any glaring issues before Gaddam sunk a lot of money into the place.

Cork N Carry would primarily be a wine retail shop and not a bar. But one issue the board addressed is whether there would be wine tastings, and if so, if that would require a new liquor license. Gaddam said there would be some tastings, but didn't clarify whether they would be tasting parties or samples upon request.

“It’s still a tasting because it’s not a full glass," Trustee Dave Smith said. "But you can taste a lot of wine. A bee sting won’t kill you but a thousand will.”

Smith added that existing New Lenox businesses such as Jewel and WineStyles already do tastings and even parties in which people are invited, so a liquor license shouldn't be an issue.

Trustee Annette Bowden asked if there were any plans to give the TJ's look a facelift. Architect Mark Ritter said there are plans for larger windows and more landscaping. “The idea is to give it more of a rustic look to the building," he said.

The interior renovations will be more of an issue than the exterior appearance, though. Building and zoning administrator Warren Rendleman said the building is 75 years old and about 30 years ago it had extensive remodeling done.

"The goal now is just to clean up a lot of the inside," he said. "There’s a lot of work to do in this thing."

A background check has already been completed, and Gaddam said he's ready to move forward with the plans as soon as possible.