Howell Sues City of Bolivar

Bolivar businesswoman Maria Howell filed a lawsuit against the City of Bolivar in late December, asking that the 25th Judicial District overturn the denial of Howell’s application to open a package store in the city.
In the petition filed by Shari Danielle Elks of the Elks Law Firm in Burns, Tennessee, Howell (Top Shelf) is asking for the petition to open a package store be approved and for all attorney fees and discretionary costs associated be awarded as well.
The 22-page document outlines Mrs. Howell’s requests to have her application approved and alleges that councilperson Suzanne Rhea “improperly participated in the discussion of and voted on Plaintiff’s application without properly recusing herself based on a conflict of interest in violation of the Bolivar Municipal Code 1-603 directly affected the outcome of the Defendant’s vote.”
Named in the suit are the city of Bolivar, all eight Bolivar City Councilmembers and Bolivar Mayor Barrett Stevens.
In 2015, voters in the Bolivar City Election approved package stores by an overwhelming margin. The city then crafted an ordinance which governs the placement of liquor stores, placing a stipulation that the store be located inside the Bolivar Downtown (DEVCO) area. Howell’s  proposed location is outside of the designated zone.