High Spirits Pulls Application

By Steve Burger

Neighbors fighting a new liquor store in the near downtown area have won their battle. At least for now, the High Spirits liquor store at the corner of Walnut and Kentucky will remain closed. 

Monday, the Indiana Alcohol and Tobacco Commission (ATC) accepted the withdrawal of the application to transfer a permit to operate the High Spirits liquor store at 325 S. Kentucky Avenue. The permit transfer withdrawal ends a nearly eight month long battle to keep the store out of that neighborhood.

Shona Jarboe was one of the leaders of the group opposing the permit transfer. Reached Monday afternoon, Jarboe said, “We are very pleased and grateful for all the community support. We’ll be watching those application filings much more closely.”

The neighbors may need to continue their vigilance. According to ATC officials, High Spirits owner Pawandeep Sooch can reapply to either transfer the permit to the 325 S. Kentucky location or another location in the future.

The permit transfer was approved in July of 2024 and the store opened on July 9 of this year. However, the approval was withdrawn by the ATC and the store closed less than a month later after Jarboe’s group, other neighborhood business owners and State Representative Alex Burton organized stiff and vocal opposition to the permit transfer. 

Citing errors in public notices and discrepancies in the permit process, Jarboe added, “The system didn’t work, but we don’t have a liquor store coming in and that’s what matters.”

This story was reported through a partnership with the Evansville NewsLab, a ChangeLab at the University of Evansville.