Azalea Park is owned by Fulton County and Roswell leases it annually for $1, said Jeffrey Leatherman, Roswell director of Parks, Recreation, Historic & Cultural Affairs.
Leatherman said the beer garden is a way for the city to gauge public interest in a permanent riverbank cafe, which is part of future plans included in the city’s River Parks Master Plan.
Roswell resident Jason Yowell has signs posted on his riverbank property that are critical of the city. Credit: Adrianne Murchison
Last Summer, Stevens and Roswell resident Jason Yowell operated a beer garden for four weekends on Yowell’s riverbank property, which is beside Nantahala Outdoor Center. It was discontinued after one month when Roswell stopped issuing special event permits due to the pandemic.
The city lifted the moratorium on special events permits in April but a new city policy could make it harder for Yowell to obtain a permit in the future, he says. A new law would require some landowners to go before the City Council for approval of special events permits.
Yowell, a frequent critic of city officials, has told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution he believes Mayor Lori Henry is against him and he would have little to no luck getting a special events permit.
“These are monopolistic trade practices to punish a critic ...” he said of the city. “This never would’ve happed if I hadn’t done last year’s beer garden.”
City officials said there’s no agenda against Yowell and the idea of a city-sanctioned beer garden arose in early 2020 but implementing it was delayed by the pandemic.
Since December, Yowell has erected big signs on the property that read “Roswell is a mess” and “This city is broken.”
The largest has the latter phrase with words “The mayor is a petty tyrant,” painted in yellow underneath.
May 18, 2021 at 07:43PM
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Roswell beer garden returns next door to previous controversial location - Atlanta Journal Constitution
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