Controversial Armed Forces Brewing gets permit approved by Norfolk City Council
NORFOLK, Va. (WAVY) — A controversial military-themed brewery has been given the green light to open its taps in Norfolk.
On Tuesday night, Norfolk City Council voted 6-1 to approve a conditional use permit for Armed Forces Brewing Company, which has taken over the former O’Connor Brewing building on W. 24th Street in the Park Place neighborhood, to operate a taproom and sell beer.
Councilwoman Andria McClellan was the lone no vote and Councilwoman Mamie Johnson was absent.
The approval came after months of heavy pushback from the local community, who argued that the company’s messaging is divisive and bigoted, particularly comments made by former Navy SEAL and company spokesperson Robert J. O’Neill, and that the brash military theme was a “cheap marketing ploy” and disrespectful to the area’s military community.
“I would be very concerned about the safety of residents once Armed Forces Brewing Company patrons start to come into the neighborhood. Public-facing shareholders for this company openly use hateful and racist language such as the ‘N’ word, most residents of Park Place are Black, and I feel like those residents are sure to encounter abuse from the people the AFBC has put a beacon out to,” said Norfolk resident and Navy veteran Katherine Bertho, pointing to O’Neill’s alleged use of a racial slur during the reported assault of a security guard in Texas.
“They didn’t come in here looking to be good neighbors, they came in with a bluster and arrogance … most veterans are humble, respectful, law-abiding and service-oriented,” said Norfolk Robert Bracknell. “They’re not the types to wrap themselves in the flag and cheapen service to make a buck.”
Armed Forces Brewing Company urges community support as it awaits Norfolk vote on permit
However proponents, including lawyers for the brewery, continued to frame Tuesday’s vote as a “land use issue,” and not necessarily whether it’s a good fit with the surrounding area.
“Yes we have some advertising that most people find amusing, and some people don’t,” said Kendall Almerico, an attorney for the company. “And the fact that they don’t like some of our advertising because it features people with a tank or people shooting a ray gun, a toy gun in some cases or things like that has no bearing on the issue today.”
That’s something that council members agreed with, despite some having misgivings about the brewery’s operations and messaging. Norfolk City Attorney Bernard Pishko the “brewing by right is not really subject to debate.”
“And the question of whether sales at this brewery should be permitted are something that has a strong amount of evidence in support of,” Pishko said.
Councilwoman McClellan said she isn’t a fan of the company’s messaging, calling it “boorish” and “misogynistic,” but emphasized that wasn’t the matter at hand. She did though have questions about the land use.
“What has been correctly pointed out is that this vote before us is a land use issue, with that in mind I’m very concerned about the increase in intensity of this business relative to its predecessor … the applicant publicly states on its website that it plans to brew up to 500,000 cases per year, far in excess of the 200,000 cases per year brewed by O’Connor, therefore while similar in nature to the previous business the increase of the intensity of use by 250 percent leads me to believe this is not a good fit for this location.”
McClellan also pointed out that the brewery recently received several stop work orders from a city inspector for violations, calling them “egregious.”
Norfolk Planning Commission recommends denial of permits for Armed Forces Brewing Company
Ultimately, others on council said those who disapprove of the company should just vote with their wallets.
“Let the market decide their fate,” said Councilman Tommy Smigiel before casting a yes vote.
After the vote, Tim Anderson, a former delegate and an attorney for Armed Forces, said the company “stood up to the woke cancel culture and put it all on the line to operate in Norfolk and won.”
He says they plan to open sometime in January.
For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WAVY.com.
