Local Hops Grower Denied Application To Hold Special Movie Night Event

PECONIC, NY — A hops farmer who wanted to host a movie night on his property for families — with an eye toward raising awareness about hops and his business — saw his appeal denied Tuesday night at a Southold Town board meeting.

Peter Barraud, of North Fork Brewing Company, LLC, applied for a special event permit to host two movie nights at his property, located on Main Road in Peconic.

His application for the special events permit was denied by the Southold Town zoning board of appeals and on Tuesday night, a public hearing was held at Town Hall regarding an appeal of that decision.

Barraud said his aim was to gain clarification as to why the application for the special event permit was denied on July 7.

His vision, Barraud said, involved families sitting in the hop field, bringing their own food and tasting beer .that featured his product.

Barraud said he initially received a letter on June 15 regarding ZBA concerns including parking and noise.

After sending back his response he received the denial on July 7, he said.

Two reasons for the denial were cited, he said, including that there was "no direct nexus" between the event and the beer being sold on premises, since the beer was not produced onsite.

The second reason for the denial was that he failed to submit the application 60 days prior to the event.

Barraud said he did not realize the 60-day window was a reason for denial, as an applicant is able to pay an additional $250, on top of the initial application fee of $150, in cases when the application comes in under the 60 days required.

He also asked about why his event was any different than wineries that host weddings and serve their wine at the event.

At his movie nights, Barraud said he'd planned to sell beer produced at Moustache Brewing Co. in Riverhead, which uses hops grown on his farm.

"Unfortunately the beer industry varies greatly from wineries. Vintners use one product. In the beer industry we have to use many," he said.

Choosing Moustache Brewery was meant to showcase how the hops grown at his operation are marketed and used, Barraud said.

He pointed out that hops businesses like his are bringing local jobs to farms in the area.

And Barraud said, he remembers going to events at The Old Field Vineyards in Southold, where he'd bring food, watch a movie and drink the wine.

The goal of the events, Barraud said, was to educate local residents on "what we do"; he was planning to charge no more than $10 a car, "so a family with any budget could enjoy watching a movie in a hop field," learn about hops and enjoy family time with their kids.

Southold Town Councilman Bob Ghosio asked how Barraud planned on educating people who came for movie night about hops.

Barraud said he'd planned the dates for when the hops would be at their greatest height, so individuals could see them when they were ready for harvest. The goal was to have informational pieces on Moustache Brewery's table so guests could see how the hops are harvested and ultimately sold to local breweries.

He added that there were also pickled hops that could be sold, featuring products grown onsite.

The movies he'd planned to show, Barraud said, were family friendly picks including "Jumanji" and "Home Alone."

Southold Town Supervisor Scott Russell said the purpose of the town's special events legislation was to allow for events that would "promote and market" the sale of products grown onsite. "You're not meeting that burden. There's no connection, no beer being produced," he said. "I'm not sure where the nexus is. This is a special event in an ag zone not at all related to ag sales."

Barraud once again pointed to vineyards that host weddings and said as it stands, zoning doesn't allow for the brewing of beer on his property. Selling beer that uses his hops would be "equivalent to wineries selling wine at a wedding," he said.

"They are producing that wine onsite and selling it onsite," Russell said. "You're not doing that here."

Whether or not it should be permitted is another issue, he said; the town recently commenced a review of ag definitions in the town code.

Barraud said he honestly thought he could prove a nexus since the beer is "a related product. We can't produce it on our property but another company can. The whole purpose," he said, was not to showcase Moustache Brewery but instead, a product made from his hops.

Russell pointed out that other applications for special events have been denied in the past because the products spotlighted were not produced and sold onsite.

The supervisor said he also felt the appeal was "a little unfair. It puts us in the position of having to say 'no' to an application that clearly isn't in the spirit or goal of the legislation. It puts us in the position of looking anti-business and anti-agriculture, and it's neither."

Barraud said the purpose of the appeal was to gain clarity. While summer is almost over, Barraud said he'd like to find a way to be able to host the events next summer.

"You need to create that nexus for us," Councilman Jim Dinizio said. "You selling hops to a distributor or a person brewing beer, that's a stretch."

Dinizio said the town wants to encourage farmers showcasing their products but no nexus as "vague" as Barraud's has been approved by the ZBA.

Russell said another issue to consider is whether the hops farm is considered a bonafide agricultural operation. The definition for a bonafide farm operation under town code says that a farm located on not less than seven acres of land has been used as a farm operation in the preceding two years for the production or sale of crops, livestock or livestock products, must have an average gross sales of $10,000 or more —or, if located on land of seven acres or less, must have an average gross sales of $50,000, or more or have been issued a farmstand permit.

"You're not there yet," Russell said.

Barraud said he leases land from a farm that does meet that criteria. He added that if he has a few acres of hops he could also sell flowers.

Barraud asked again why coming in under the 60 days was a reason for denial; Dinizio said the ZBA has ruled that way before in the past.

Barraud said if he'd known, he wouldn't have wasted the $150 fee to apply. Russell said that was a fair concern and the town would look into it.

The supervisor said the issue has been ongoing, with many businesses that have asked for special event permits being asked to show that the event showcased products, including Christmas trees, that were grown and sold onsite.

The appeal was denied and the $250 late fee will be refunded to Barraud, according to Southold Town Attorney Bill Duffy.

"I regret saying 'yes' to the denial," Russell said. "I think you're just a little bit early." He added that a committee is working on all the issues raised.

After the event, Russell said, "The special events legislation, which governs events held on farmland, was adopted to give farm owners the opportunity to market and sell their products produced onsite. The applicant couldn’t demonstrate a nexus between an agricultural operation and the event. Beer isn’t a defined agricultural product and showcasing the beer produced by a brewery in Riverhead isn’t what the board had intended when it first adopted the code."