Hampton Roads residents, craft beer community denounce planned Armed Forces brewery in Norfolk
Norfolk residents, city leaders and members of the brewing community are denouncing a proposed military-centric brewery headed to the former O’Connor Brewing Co. space in the Railroad District.
Dozens of people packed MJ’s Tavern during a town hall meeting organized by state Del. Jackie Glass Wednesday evening, with many speaking out against the Annapolis, Maryland-based Armed Forces Brewing Co.
“We do not stoop to that level of red, white and bigotry,” Tom Wilder, a veteran and co-owner of Young Veterans Brewing Co. in Virginia Beach, said during the event.
The town hall was organized after Glass, who represents part of Norfolk, rescinded her comments welcoming the brewery to town. Her comments appeared in a July 7 news release from Gov. Glenn Youngkin applauding the brewery’s move. It’s common for quotes from local officials to appear in economic development announcements.
On Monday, Glass posted an anti-bigotry stance on social media, questioning the values of the brewery’s leadership after learning about what she said were anti-LGBTQ+ sentiments.
Armed Forces Brewing Co. brand ambassador Robert O’Neill had spoken out on Twitter against using drag queens for military recruitment, masking on airplanes during the pandemic and the use of masculine-presenting models in women’s swimsuits during an Adidas pride collection.
Armed Forces Brewing CEO Alan Beal also had told a conservative news outlet that beer sales have increased after a controversy around Bud Light and transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney.
Wilder, who owns Young Veterans with Neil McCannon, sought to differentiate his brewery from Armed Forces, saying Young Veterans was inclusive and welcoming to everyone.
Nick Dintelmann, president of Hampton Roads Pride, asked Glass during the town hall if she felt misled when she originally was quoted in the economic development announcement. Glass responded that she didn’t feel misled, but rather had not properly vetted the company and its leaders before issuing the statement.
Another attendee expressed frustration that Virginia tax dollars were being used to support the business. While Norfolk hasn’t offered Armed Forces any economic development incentives, the state is allowing the company to use the Virginia Jobs Investment Program to support employee recruitment and training.
Other attendees wondered whether Norfolk City Council had any power to deny Armed Forces permits allowing them to operate in the city. According to a Facebook post by City Council member Andria McClellan, the company will need approval from City Council to sell alcohol on site and operate a taproom.
Typically, new businesses meet with City Council members before moving to Norfolk, McClellan said. Armed Forces never took this step, she said.
“They didn’t reach out to the local leaders, and they obviously don’t know the culture,” McClellan said in the post.
Andrew Coplon, the founder of the Craft Beer Professionals advocacy group, said during the event that he had created an online submission form to reach out to City Council members and other city leaders with concerns about the brewery, also noting, to cheers, that the URL armedforcesbrewery.com was redirecting users to the form.
In response to the town hall, Beal said his brewery would be welcoming to everyone and celebrate the diversity of the United States military. He also said it was irresponsible for some to suggest asking the city to pull the company’s operating permits before they were even in the area.
“We’re not a danger to the community,” Beal said.
Some town hall attendees suggested Glass and city leaders start a dialogue with Armed Forces Brewing about their concerns. Beal said that neither Glass nor City Council members had reached out to him, but also said he had not reached out to them either.
Armed Forces announced on July 7 they would be purchasing and moving into the former O’Connor Brewing Co. headquarters at 211 W. 24th St. In a social media post, Kevin and Penny O’Connor said their beers would still be sold in retail stores after the closure.
Trevor Metcalfe, 757-222-5345, trevor.metcalfe@pilotonline.com
