Trakass Bar & Lounge at 2638 Elm Street
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An application for a new Specific Use Permit for an alcoholic beverage establishment limited to a bar, lounge, or tavern and an inside commercial amusement use limited to a dance hall, on property zoned Tract A within Planned Development No. 269, Deep Ellum/Near East Side District, on the south line of Elm Street, east of North Good Latimer Expwy, west of N. Crowdus Street AKA 2638 Elm Street. Staff Recommendation: Approval, subject to a site plan and staff’s recommended conditions. Applicant: Trakass Bar & Lounge, LLC / Tomas Alonzo Representative: Audra Buckley Planner: Justin Lee Council District: 2 Z-26-000136
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Confirm whether commission vote ends alcohol permit approval process
Why now: Both hearings were carried 15-0 with Justin Lee listed as planner and Council District 2 noted, but the record supplies no governing ordinance text, appeal window, or permit term for this Specific Use Permit.
What to do: Ask the planner of record whether the August 20 commission action is the final approval for this Specific Use Permit or whether a Council District 2 review, appeal, or ordinance adoption step still applies, and obtain the written document that establishes that answer. Treat the scope and any time limit in the approved conditions as an open question until you have the signed conditions in hand — the summary record states approval occurred outside Council with no later procedural step verified.
Act before: After the final conditions document is produced
Pull approved site plan for Elm Street bar permit
Why now: The City Plan Commission approved the new Specific Use Permit 15-0 on August 20, 2026 with staff recommending approval subject to a site plan and conditions, on Tract A within Planned Development No. 269 in the Deep Ellum/Near East Side District.
What to do: Request the site plan and full condition set that the Specific Use Permit was approved 'subject to' from planner Justin Lee before finalizing build-out drawings for 2638 Elm Street. The permit covers two distinct uses — a bar/lounge/tavern plus an inside commercial amusement dance hall — and any floor-area, occupancy, or hours limits attached to the dance hall component will drive the interior layout and any required separation between the two uses.
Act before: After the approved site plan and conditions are obtained
Ask why dance hall permit took two unanimous votes
Why now: Item 11 carried 15-0 on August 6, 2026 and again 15-0 on August 20, 2026, with the second agenda entry noting 'U/A From: August 6, 2026' for applicant Trakass Bar & Lounge, LLC / Tomas Alonzo, represented by Audra Buckley.
What to do: Ask the Plan Commission secretary and planner Justin Lee what changed between the two hearings on this Deep Ellum bar and dance hall application, and request both staff reports side by side. The item passed unanimously on August 6, then reappeared two weeks later marked as held from that date and passed unanimously again — and the staff recommendation language shifted from 'staff's recommended conditions' to simply 'conditions,' which may signal a negotiated change to the condition set that never surfaced in a contested vote.
Act before: After the requested records are produced
Request hours and noise conditions for Elm Street dance hall
Why now: The Plan Commission approved the Specific Use Permit 15-0 on August 20, 2026 for both an alcoholic beverage establishment and an inside commercial amusement limited to a dance hall, subject to conditions.
What to do: Ask the planner for the approved conditions covering hours of operation, amplified sound, and any patio or outdoor area for the new bar and dance hall on the south side of Elm Street between North Good Latimer Expressway and North Crowdus Street. The permit authorizes a dance hall in addition to a bar — a use with later closing times and louder sound than a standard bar — and those limits are set in the conditions document, not in the agenda item.
Act before: After the approved conditions are released
Key Entities
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Trust Proof
What we said then vs what happened next
We said (Aug 5, 2026):
Get closing hours and noise limits for Elm Street lounge
What happened (Aug 20, 2026):
Carried: 15 to 0
We said (Aug 5, 2026):
Check if dance hall already operates at 2638 Elm
What happened (Aug 20, 2026):
Carried: 15 to 0
Timeline
An application for a new Specific Use Permit for an alcoholic beverage establishment limited to a bar, lounge, or tavern and an inside commercial amusement use limited to a dance hall, on property zoned Tract A within Planned Development No. 269, Deep Ellum/Near East Side District, on the south line of Elm Street, east of N. Good Latimer Expwy., west of N. Crowdus Street, [AKA 2638 Elm Street]. Staff Recommendation: Approval, subject to a site plan and conditions. Applicant: Trakass Bar & Lounge, LLC / Tomas Alonzo Representative: Audra Buckley U/A From: August 6, 2026. Planner: Justin Lee Council District: 2 Z-26-000136
Vote: 15 for, 0 against
recommend approval of a new Specific Use Permit for one year
An application for a new Specific Use Permit for an alcoholic beverage establishment limited to a bar, lounge, or tavern and an inside commercial amusement use limited to a dance hall, on property zoned Tract A within Planned Development No. 269, Deep Ellum/Near East Side District, on the south line of Elm Street, east of North Good Latimer Expwy, west of N. Crowdus Street AKA 2638 Elm Street. Staff Recommendation: Approval, subject to a site plan and staff’s recommended conditions. Applicant: Trakass Bar & Lounge, LLC / Tomas Alonzo Representative: Audra Buckley Planner: Justin Lee Council District: 2 Z-26-000136
Vote: 15 for, 0 against
hold under advisement until August 20, 2026