Planet K Disrupts Bee Cave's Orbit

The city of Bee Cave's quest to banish Planet K continues – though things aren't looking particularly good for the city's attempts to maintain itself as a bland haven for big boxes and malls. On May 9, Travis County District Judge Lora Livingston signed an order denying the city's request for a temporary injunction against the popular Austin smoke-'n'-stuff shop. The city sought to keep store owner Michael Kleinman from moving forward with a plan for a mural on the side of the building – a pastoral scene complete with bluebonnets and a longhorn – painted by Austin funnyman and artist Kerry Awn. In sum, without the painting there, there's nothing to enjoin; hence, the suit is unripe. Indeed, Livingston also gave the city a nudge to move things forward, requiring it to provide a response within 14 days to a permit request to refurbish the interior of the building, which was previously a restaurant. According to Planet K lawyer Terry Irion, permit requests were initially filed on March 31, but to date the city has yet to issue anything. What's the holdup? Irion isn't entirely sure. "It's not rocket science," he said. Until those permits are secured, the store cannot move forward toward opening, and until that happens, there is no point in putting up Awn's painting. Still, when it comes time to do so, Livingston ordered Planet K's Kleinman to give the city a five-day notice of his intent to install the painting. In other words, unless something changes – and, as Irion puts it, "cooler heads prevail" – it's likely this dispute will wind up back in court for another round.