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Redner Has New Idea Brewing: Beer Venture With Son

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By ELLEN GEDALIUS

The Tampa Tribune

Published: May 16, 2008

TAMPA - Joe Redner, strip club king, fitness center owner, landlord and perennial local government candidate, wants to add another business venture to his resume: brewery owner.

Cigar City Brewing would specialize in local flavors and teach patrons how to match beer with meals.

Redner and his son Joey are hoping to open the microbrewery by September. The brewery will be at the elder Redner's headquarters on Spruce Street, near Dale Mabry Highway.

The pair want to sell the beer to a distributor, who would then sell the brew to restaurants, bars and liquor shops. They also would give patrons tours of the brewery and samples. If customers like the beer, they would be able to buy more at the gift shop.

A key part of the plan is to hold catered dinners at the 6,000-square-foot brewery on Friday nights. Diners would be served a five-course meal, each course paired with a different beer. The Redners expect about 50 people to attend each dinner.

Their plans hit a snag Thursday when they couldn't get four votes from the Tampa City Council allowing them to sell beer and wine at the site. The council voted 3-2 in favor of the proposal, with John Dingfelder, Joseph Caetano and Mary Mulhern in favor, and Gwen Miller and Tom Scott opposed.

Council members Charlie Miranda and Linda Saul-Sena were absent, forcing the issue to another vote June 5. Four votes are required to grant a wet-zoning.

Joey Redner, 35, said he has been a beer connoisseur for years, having written about beer for Web sites and trade publications. He has wanted to open his own craft brewery for a long time.

His multimillionaire father is providing start-up funding, he said.

He said he has no plans to sell pints of beer or turn the venture into a bar. His goal is simple, he said: Produce about 2,000 barrels a year and focus on local flavors, such as exotic fruits. He wants Cigar City Brewing to be the go-to microbrewery in Tampa.

The brewery would be in the Redner Enterprises complex, which already includes a lighting company and offices. Joe Redner plans to turn a vacant building into a boxing gym for amateurs and children in the Carver City/Lincoln Gardens neighborhood.

A Tampa police officer who handles wet-zoning petitions told the council the department has no objections.

But four neighborhood residents told city council members Thursday they don't support the brewery.

Neighborhood Association board member Maurice Harvey said he was concerned about traffic in an already busy area. He said he knows how successful Redner is as a businessman and is concerned the brewery will be a big draw, bringing traffic with it.

Wilson Robertson Jr., president of the neighborhood association, said he also didn't like the plan.

"We are very much concerned this will diminish the quality of life in our community," Robertson said. "We strongly oppose this wet-zoning petition."

Miller, who ran in a nasty run-off election against Joe Redner last year, made a motion to deny the petition because the neighborhood is opposed. Her motion died for lack of a second.

Reporter Ellen Gedalius can be reached at (813) 259-7679 or egedalius@tampatrib.com.

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