Bellaire City Council approves sale of beer, wine at Evelyn's Park

By Sarah Tucker
Alcohol will be on the menu at the new Evelyn’s Park.
After some discussion and several comments from residents, Bellaire City Council adopted an ordinance Monday night amending the city code to allow the sale of beer and wine at the park.
This comes on the heels of an announcement last week that the owners of Zelko Bistro in the Heights had been chosen to operate an indoor-outdoor cafe on site.
A few residents attended the meeting to voice concerns over the proposed ordinance. One couple who lived next to the future park said allowing alcohol to be sold would turn a tranquil Evelyn’s Park into “Evelyn’s Bar and Grill.” They and others were concerned about not only noise but the potential for drunk drivers, and children around booze and bums.
Most others, however, were in favor of the ordinance change.
More than a dozen residents wrote to City Council, voicing their support to serve wine and beer at the new five-acre facility. Residents who attended the meeting said they supported the ordinance because it would help ensure the park’s success, as well as provide them with a nearby place to grab a drink without having to drive downtown or to Midtown.
Councilmembers agreed and voted unanimously on the proposal.
The cafe will sit on the Newcastle/Bellaire corner of the property and emulate the design of the “Big Yellow House,” which stood there for more than a century until it was deemed unsalvageable. Evelyn’s Park Conservancy, which is administering and providing some funding for design of the park, chose Zelko Concepts as the operator.
The cafe is expected to be completed with the rest of the park by next summer.
In other action, City Council:

• Temporarily suspended the park curfew to allow the annual Tents in Town urban campoutfrom Oct. 23-25 in Bellaire Zindler Park;
• Approved holding joint elections with Harris County;
• Authorized a $90,000 contract with ARKK Engineers for professional city engineer services;
• Approved a contract with Bureau Veritas North America for building inspections; and
• Updated the 2009 Comprehensive Plan to include the Parks Master Plan as an appendix.