Burleson’s first liquor store gets zoning approval with unanimous council vote
The first zoning request for a liquor store in Burleson passed Monday night with unanimous support from City Council members.
Should development go according to plan, the liquor store, owned by BTX Bottle Shoppe, LLC, will occupy the former Tuesday Morning retail site in the shopping center at 654 SW Wilshire Blvd. Burleson’s planning and zoning commission stipulated that the specific use permit for liquor sales would only apply to that suite and not the entire shopping plaza, according to Tony McIlwain, Burleson’s director of development services.
In November, Burleson voters overwhelmingly approved a resolution to allow liquor sales in the city after years of it being strictly a beer-and-wine town. More than 24,000 people voted in the special election, with more than 15,000 supporting the measure.
Perhaps surprisingly, no one showed up to Monday’s City Council meeting to speak in favor of or contest the permit. McIlwain also said no residents voiced concerns after the planning and zoning commission first announced the proposal.
One of the usual arguments against liquor stores is that they are a magnet for crime. A 2018 study published by the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health found a correlation between increased access to liquor stores in Baltimore, Maryland, and an increase in violent crime. According to the study, increasing access to liquor stores by 10% resulted in a 37% increase in violent crime.
One of the usual arguments for liquor stores is that they are an economic boon. An impact study released before the November election estimated that legalizing liquor sales would add 114 jobs in Burleson and boost the city’s annual tax revenue by approximately $253,961.
Over the past year, two liquor stores, including a Specs on Interstate 35W, opened in south Fort Worth just across the city limits from Burleson. There have long been liquor stores in other parts of Johnson County, including Alvarado and Venus, just a few miles south of Burleson.
This story was originally published March 25, 2025 at 10:55 AM.