 Bemidji residents have raised questions over the newly proposed city liquor store. Josh Peterson takes a look at the variances that were granted for the project. For years, the city of Bemidji has been looking at replacing its current liquor store on the city's north side. But over the past few months, questions have been raised over the variances issued for the new store. We did have some push back for the most part. The joint planning board followed the way the bylaws are put in place. The variances that were issued by the joint planning board dealt with the proposed building setback from the roadway and the number of parking spaces the new facility will have. The city of Bemidji says they followed proper protocol. We don't feel that we received any sort of preferential treatment at all. We actually conversely followed the same process that everybody else has gone through. Because of how narrow this stretch of property is, here along Paul Bunyan Drive, the city of Bemidji has requested multiple variances so that they can build the new liquor store on these two parts of the land. Similar variances have also been issued to multiple other businesses along Paul Bunyan Drive. With many businesses redeveloping their property along the business corridor, the lay of the land is so unique that many variances have been issued. When the city does have a lot of variances they issue and we have issued variances along the stretch, it's common for a city to take a look at its code and maybe retool that code a bit. With so many variances being issued, the joint planning board will take a closer look at the ordinances and possibly make revisions in the future. We're going to review these areas. That's the thing is you should have a lot of variances over time that you're awarding. And if you are, then that's something that maybe you should be looking at. In Bemidji, Josh Peterson, Lakeland News. The new city liquor store is expected to break ground in May. If you enjoyed this segment of Lakeland News, please consider making a tax deductible contribution to Lakeland PBS.