DES MOINES, Iowa — The City of Des Moines says it has reached a "solution" with Wooly's following concerns about the concert venue's future.
"The intent was never to shut down Wooly’s. They, like all Des Moines local businesses, are essential in creating an environment that attracts residents and visitors alike," according to a City of Des Moines statement.
Wooly's, a well-known music venue in the East Village, faced noise complaints from Charles Larson, who owns the property located at 510 East Locust St.
These two violations put Wooly's conditional use permit, which allows it to serve alcohol, in danger. The Zoning Board of Adjustment was meant to consider revoking Wooly's permit at a meeting on Sept. 25.
However, the item regarding Wooly's has been removed from the Zoning Board meeting, according to the city's statement.
"[City officials] sat down with the parties involved and reached a solution that respects the interests of both our local businesses and residents," the city's statement reads.
Wooly's says it is grateful for all of the community support, but its still looking ahead at potential changes.
"We wouldn't say we're out of the woods yet," said Burke Vanraalte, a production manager at Wooly's. "There's definitely some more work to be done when it comes to the situation."
The East Village Neighborhood board says losing Wooly's would be detrimental to East Village, and fears there could be a domino effect.
"If we start to lose that culture, if we start to lose those staples, people aren't going to want to come to our city," said Luke Dickens, the board president of the East Village Historic Neighborhood.
Wooly's attorney claims it has never seen a noise complaint in the past 10 years, which is making the business question where they came from.
Wooly's visitors are also concerned and plan to continue speaking out about their love for the music venue.
"Wooly's is just a venue which is a labor of love, truly created out of love for the scene in Des Moines and music in Des Moines," said Jen Wiley, a Des Moines resident advocating on behalf of Wooly's.
In addition, a group of music industry experts and city staff will review and make recommendations to the city's noise ordinances associated with music venues.
The city did not say what the resolution entailed, nor who would be in the group reviewing the noise ordinances.
Editor Note: The below video originally aired Sept. 11, 2024.