ORANGE PARK, Fla. – A proposed liquor store at the intersection of U.S. 17 and Stiles Avenue has divided residents after some learned the site would be just yards from a sober-living home.
The store would be built in an old cash-advance building if the town approves the plan. Some neighbors say the proximity to the sober-living home could undermine residents’ recovery.
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“This is sober living, so I think it’s awful,” Kristie Sweet, said, who lives at the sober-living home and asked not to be shown on camera. “You don’t want to see that come in. It’s going to be horrible for those who are trying to get sober because they’re going to walk out their front door and see a liquor store.”
A person who works nearby called the proposal “a bad idea,” while others expressed mixed views about whether the neighborhood needs another liquor outlet.
Proposed liquor stores have become flash points in communities around Jacksonville in recent years.
On the Northside, residents opposed a proposed store next to a school, and the city later purchased the property.
Zoning signs are posted at the Orange Park site. Residents can weigh in at a Planning and Zoning Board meeting at 6 p.m. Thursday at town hall.