The former OT Tavern site at 3606 Greenville Ave. Photography by Renee Umsted.
A rezone could close Bar 3606 and prevent bars and nightclubs from returning to the property.
Uptown Ventures and Hillcrest Towers, owners of the property at 3606 Greenville Ave., are asking for a new planned development district to allow only certain types of businesses, limit operating hours, restrict alcoholic beverage establishments and limit the amount of space that can be used for restaurants.
Though the exact conditions of the planned development district are still under review, the intent of the zoning is to prevent businesses such as bars, nightclubs and bail bond offices from operating at the site. All businesses would have to close by midnight.
The rezone also proposes to change parking regulations and allow the number of existing parking spaces on the site to accommodate the uses. There are a few parking spaces off Greenville Avenue along with a parking lot to the east of the site. Foxtrot, a coffee shop and market, is planning to open at the old OT Tavern space. Adjacent to Bar 3606 are Society Bakery, Refined Fitness and The Now Massage Boutique.
The zoning of the property is community retail with a modified delta overlay. Bars, lounges and related businesses are not allowed in community retail districts without a specific use permit; Bar 3606, which does not conform to current Dallas Development Code regulations, has been operating on a grandfathered alcoholic beverage permit.
Construction on the south side of the building at 3606 Greenville Ave., where OT Tavern used to be. Photography by Renee Umsted.
The zoning case is still early in the process, and no date has been set to appear before the City Plan Commission or Dallas City Council.
But zoning is just one way residents tired of the problems surrounding Bar 3606 and OT Tavern are trying to change the neighborhood.
Many neighbors have spent years complaining about OT Tavern and Bar 3606. The site, though immediately adjacent to restaurants and businesses, is in the middle of a residential area, blocks from Greenland Hills Preschool and Mockingbird Elementary School.
Many complaints are related to crime that has occurred at the businesses over many years. Just in 2022, a 20-year-old man was fatally shot in the 3600 block of Greenville Avenue in March, and there was another shooting in June at 3600 Greenville Ave., when two people were hit.
The most recent incident occurred Jan. 7. Dallas police officers responded to a call for service at the address around 2 a.m., a public information officer with the department said. An investigation found that two security guards tried to stop a group of people who were fighting by spraying pepper spray at the group. An unknown person then hit a security guard and left the location. An investigation is ongoing, the police said.
In June, a community prosecutor filed a lawsuit at the request of District 14 City Council member Paul Ridley against the landlord of Bar 3606 and OT Tavern, demanding remediation of the crime issues surrounding the property.
Neighbors are also taking their case to the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission. Residents within 300 feet of Bar 3606 were asked to file a protest with the TABC, asking the TABC not to renew the bar’s liquor license. Ridley, who represents the area where Bar 3606 is located, filed a protest, and he wrote in a July newsletter that state Rep. Morgan Meyer and state Sen. Nathan Johnson also filed letters with the TABC.
Bar 3606’s permit expired in July, a spokesperson for the TABC said, and its renewal paperwork is pending. If a business submits its renewal paperwork to TABC before the permit expires, it can continue to operate while its renewal packet is processing.
