The San Marcos Planning and Zoning Commission met Jan. 23 to consider a request by Olive Garden to renew a three-year Conditional Use Permit that allows the sale of mixed beverages at the restaurant.
The commission ruled to postpone the renewal of the Conditional Use Permit for one month until proper research is conducted on the restaurant’s impact to residents of the adjacent neighborhood.
An Olive Garden representative was not in attendance at the city’s meeting, leaving local residents Pedro Quintero and his wife Yvonne Quintero to speak out against the restaurant and the renewal of the Conditional Use Permit.
Quintero argued that the foundation of the recently constructed Olive Garden has lead to reoccurring flood problems for neighborhood residents. He further argued the excess noise levels created by restaurant goers and passing traffic keep many residents up throughout the night.
“When the Blanco and San Marcos River max out, the drains don’t work properly causing water to backflow into the neighborhood,” Quintero said. “Additionally, noise levels regularly persist at all hours of the night. Alcohol isn’t to blame, but it certainly wouldn’t help the issues at hand,”
Council will be working with engineers on solutions to the flooding and noise levels before returning to the subject on Feb. 27.
The agenda for the meeting is available on the city of San Marcos’ website. The next meeting will be held on Feb. 13.