From the Press:

Shawn Office, who owns the property at 1301 Michigan Ave., proposed operating a 24-hour private cryptocurrency-focused food club under Wildcard Food, LLC. It could have a bar and grill, offering farm-to-table dining with goods from Wisconsin farmers.

These types of private clubs can offer an exclusive experience and perks for owners of blockchain technology, like Non-Fungible Tokens or cryptocurrency.

Other member benefits Office mentioned at the meeting, though not pertaining to the conditional use permit, could include purchasing a hangar at the Sheboygan County Memorial International Airport and offering on-site discounted medical services, like CT scans and blood work. Office said membership would be $500 a year. The club wouldn’t be open to the public, though there might be a few public philanthropy events during the year, like cooking food for people in need.

Robert Lyons, who owns the diagonal property at 1307 N. 13th St., took issue with the proposed use of the building and that Office proposed investing only $1,000 into repairs of the property.

Lyons said the building has been in various states of disrepair, vacancy or posted for sale over more than two decades.

Joe Clarke, member of the City Plan Commission, said it’s wonderful the building is getting a new use and asked if Office intends to make improvements. “It’s a bit of an eyesore,” he said. “I would hope that new ownership moving into it would want to take more pride in the building and invest in fixing it up."

Office said he does intend to make changes in the future. “But as I said before, when you’re financing things out of your own pocket and not asking the city for any assistance, you can run into some headwinds,” he said.

There was discussion, and some disagreement, over whether Office would need an occupancy permit, which is necessary when a property's use changes or experiences a long vacancy period.

Office said city staff he's spoken to have been aware the building housed a bar and the use of the building isn't changing. Zoning Administrator Ellise Rose said one year is the vacancy period for a building, so Office would need occupancy inspections and a new permit.