By Anthony Warren
Published: Apr. 16, 2024 at 2:49 PM CDT|Updated: 21 hours ago
JACKSON, Miss. (WLBT) - Jackson city leaders have cleared the way for a new restaurant/sports bar to come to Banner Hall but are holding off for the time being on allowing a new liquor store to take up shop there.
On Monday, the Jackson City Council approved a use permit for Rex’s Good Time, a new restaurant that will take up about a third of the space left open after the Bridal Path moved out of the facility months ago.
The council, meanwhile, voted down a use permit for a liquor store planned for the location after Ward One Councilman Ashby Foote said he wanted more time to speak with existing Banner Hall business owners and the nearby St. Richard’s Catholic Church.
He was also concerned that the petitioners didn’t reach out to him to schedule a meeting before the item came to the council for consideration.
“I wasn’t aware of this until I got to the meeting today,” he said. “I’m just going to say I’m pretty easy to get a hold of because I’m usually at Broad Street every Thursday morning.”
Rex’s Good Time is one of two projects planned for a nearly 4,400-square-foot space. Additional plans include a high-end package store. A third project, a small events venue was also planned for the spot. However, that venue is no longer coming in.
“We had a hard time finding tenants for that particular space. It’s 4,732 square feet, with zero windows other than the very front. So, it was perfect for storage of wedding gowns and things of that nature, but it’s not great for visibility and it’s not great for natural light,” said Doug Price, a commercial real estate broker tasked with filling the space.
According to Price, plans are to set aside a little less than 1,100 square feet for the liquor store, which would be located immediately to the left when people enter Banner Hall’s main atrium. Next to that would be Rex’s Good Time, which would take up about 1,400 square feet of space.
Council members raised several questions about the new restaurant/sports bar, including what type of food it would serve, what hours it would be open, and whether additional security would be provided.
Price said Rex’s will serve pizza, salads, and bar foods, and will be open Tuesday through Sunday to at least 10 p.m., and later for big games. He said Banner Hall already spends six figures a year on security and will likely have to spend more once the new establishment opens.
Ward Five Councilman Vernon Hartley was concerned that the use permit would be approved for a restaurant, but the city would get another seedy establishment instead.
“I had a similar issue before my ward that was put out as a restaurant, and now I’ve got biker gangs, I’ve got everything... I get a text every single time the place is open with all kinds of stuff,” he said.
The council approved the measure after a pretty lengthy discussion. Members held off on approving plans for the liquor store, with Ward 3 Councilman Kenneth Stokes saying the council should be careful about what goes in Banner Hall.
“That part of I-55 is under attack from the homeless and it’s spreading, and the wrong thing in Banner Hall will close Banner Hall. If Banner Hall closes, it’s going to be a domino effect,” he said. “That’s why I’m concerned about what’s going in there.”
Stokes said he would rather see an “upscale eatery,” that could compete with Char, rather than a sports bar.
“People just don’t like to have places where people get drunk near churches and schools, around children,” he said. “I know it’s a use permit, and with a use permit, they have to bring it every year. But what’s going to be the overall consequences before it comes back to the council to be reexamined?”
Price said he had spoken to officials at St. Richard Catholic Church, and they have withdrawn their opposition to the projects. Ward 7 Councilwoman Virgi Lindsay said she also would have been told. “I have a feeling that if our priest did not like it then, I would know it. And I have not gotten a single phone call,” she said. “So, I feel pretty good about it.”
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