TEXAS TOWNSHIP, MI -- Plans have stalled for a new tap room/restaurant in Texas Township, but Bill Schultz from Schultz Fruitridge Farms said he's confident that, in time, it will happen.

The former Christ the King church at 6970 Texas Drive in Texas Corners is the new location for a tap room/restaurant called Texas Corners Brewing Company operated by Schultz Fruitridge Farms.

"We're working on it, but we're still trying to run a farm at the same time," he said with a laugh. "At the present rate of progress it's not going to happen before the end of the year."

Antwerp Township Planning Commission last Wednesday denied Schultz's request to open a microbrewery production facility at Schultz Fruitridge Farms. The microbrewery would supply beer and hard cider for the restaurant, called the Texas Corners Brewing Company.



"One of the reasons is because we don't have a stand-alone ordinance for the brewery," Heather Mitchell, Antwerp Township clerk, said. "This is something that could be good, but we need to rein it in a little bit."

The township didn't want to set a precedent of allowing a microbrewery production facility to operate without an ordinance, citing concerns that other residents would follow suit, she said.

"You're opening it up for everyone in the district," Mitchell said.

The commission is discussing and possibly crafting an ordinance for microbreweries at a workshop on Aug. 28.

"They do this so when they have their September meeting, they're not starting from scratch," Mitchell said.

After an ordinance is drafted, the planning commission will hear public comments and bring the ordinance to the township board that ultimately approves or denies the ordinance. The microbrewery ordinance could be passed in as early as two to three months.

Schultz can reapply to open a microbrewery operation once the ordinance is approved, he said. If he gets approval from Antwerp Township, he'll send the application microbrewery to the Michigan Liquor Control Commission for approval.

"It's a slow process," he said. "I've been told by people that said they've waited a year."

The tap room/restaurant, formerly known as Christ the King church at 6970 Texas Drive, is located in Texas Township. In April, the Texas Township Board unanimously approved the liquor license application for the restaurant. With township approval, the application for the liquor license now proceeds to the Michigan Liquor Control Commission.

No site plan has been submitted to the township yet, Schultz said. An engineer has started drawing up kitchen plans.

Initially, the family had talked about making hard cider and naming it Apple Blossom Winery after Michigan's state flower.

"We registered the name and were checking into the paper work on how to do it and then we lost all our crops last year and we had no apples," he said.

After some brainstorming, the family decided that selling hard cider at the farm, essentially in Schultz's backyard, wouldn't last a business. When the church went up for sale, they bought the location and planned to open it as a tap room/restaurant, he said.

Schultz already has a cook lined up for the restaurant and plans to offer artisan and Greek pizza.

"We're going to try to use as much local stuff as we can," he said.

He plans on using crops such as apples, cherries and peaches from the family farm. Schultz Fruitridge Farms runs a farm market where it sells its own produce.

"We raise bison," he said. "I'd like to have that on the menu."

If the customer had a good time and a good beer, they can ring the bell on the way out, he said. The white church in Texas Corners is a landmark in the community, complete with a working bell in the steeple.

"I feel very fortunate to have bought the property," he said. "We have a wonderful location."

He said they plan on building a beer garden outside.

"We applied for the small winery license and we added the beer idea and that's what threw a wrench into it," he said. "When we added beer, it wasn't in the ordinance. I was hoping they would just say 'Yeah OK, we'll just add it on.' You never know if you don't try."

Erin Gignac covers general assignment stories for MLive/Kalamazoo Gazette. Email her at egignac@mlive.com and follow her on Twitter