Brentwood residents hire attorney to help fight liquor store issue

A Jacksonville community says they were left in the dark concerning the construction of a liquor store that they don’t want.

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Jacksonville City Councilman Reggie Gaffney Jr. held a meeting tonight at a community center in Brentwood to discuss what’s next for neighbors.

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Brentwood residents told Action News Jax they’ve hired former Jacksonville City Council Member Jack Webb as their attorney.

We did confirm through Gaffney Jr., that he had no say in hiring Webb, but rather community members did.

“Go to St. Johns and build them,” Tracey Bryant said.

Over two dozen Brentwood residents came out and voiced their concerns about a liquor store currently being built on Golfair Blvd.

One of the biggest issues they have is the liquor store, which sits just feet away from Kipp Voice Academy, and in an area that is already oversaturated with liquor stores.

Several residents, who don’t even live in the Brentwood area, including Bryant showed up to tonight’s meeting.

She tells Action News Jax, that enough is enough.

“You are hindering our kids, you are hindering our kids from learning. You are hindering our kids from being successful,” Bryant said.

“I smell and rat, a cat, a dog an elephant, a snake,” community member Lydia Bell said.

Action News Jax first told you last month, the city’s planning commission approved this idea back in July of 2020, and residents claimed they weren’t notified about this meeting.

Action News Jax has since learned from Councilman Gaffney’s assistant that a decision by the Planning Commission does not require approval from the full city council unless a project has rezoning issues.

Bell believes, if this was another community, their residents would’ve been notified

“One of the supporters from Mandarin, she straight up said, we don’t go through this out here in Mandarin,” Bell said.

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Residents say they plan to have another community meeting in a few weeks.

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