Concerns about a Plympton-Wyoming brewery having to close its taproom have been averted.
Stonepicker Brewing Company made an "important announcement" over Facebook on Saturday, stating its taproom and patio services would close as of October 10.
"Over the past couple of weeks, the Municipality of Plympton-Wyoming has been in contact with us and informed us that we are not in compliance with some of their regulations," read the initial post.
Joe Donkers told Sarnia News Today that the business initially provided the township with a five-year business plan to eventually move the taproom to a different location. However, this plan was not feasible due to ownership changes and the effects of the pandemic.
The Facebook post read that the brewery would need to meet 18 requirements in order to continue operating its taproom. The post was shared nearly 200 times within just a few days.
"It's very heartwarming that people are concerned about what's going on," Donkers said. "It's kind of overwhelming, we didn't expect this at all. We thought someone would be unhappy but we didn't realize what was going to explode. It's pretty amazing."
The outcry over social media may have prompted the lines of communication to open more between the local business and the municipality. Stonepickers posted on Facebook Tuesday morning, thanking everyone for their support.
"We are working with the Municipality to remain open and are confident that we will be able to reach an agreement," read the Facebook update.
Plympton-Wyoming CAO Carolyn Tripp said there were some "misunderstandings" with regards to some of the requirements and municipal officials met with the Donkers on Monday.
"They have decided to keep the taproom open and we'll continue to work with them to address any of the outstanding requirements but we're very happy to do so and they're very happy to stay open," she said.
Tripp did not specify what the misunderstanding was. However, she said the municipality doesn't foresee any future issues.
"Businesses in Plympton-Wyoming are very, very important to us. We definitely wanted to see Stonepickers not just be a brewing operation in our municipality, like the social media post suggested, we also like to have them and want to continue to have them as a location for people to frequent as a taproom."
Stonepicker Brewing Company has been operational since 2018.