Walker residents to vote on Sunday sales law
You can’t chuck a chorizo burrito without hitting a weekend brunch spot in Chattanooga these days. In rural North Georgia? Not so much.
But some restaurant owners there want to change the culture, at least a little. For starters, they have to change the laws. Restaurants can’t sell alcohol in Walker County on Sundays, meaning prospective brunches can’t include bloody marys or mimosas.
“It’s 2018,” said Jason Phibbs, owner of Phibbs Bar & Grill in Rock Spring. “Not being able to buy a beer with a burger while you’re catching a football game is kind of unheard of.”
Residents will have a chance to change the law later this year, though. On Thursday night, Walker County Commissioner Shannon Whitfield put a binding referendum on the Nov. 6 ballot, asking voters whether they want to allow restaurants to serve alcohol beginning at 11 a.m. on Sundays. If passed, the law takes effect Dec. 1.
If the law passes, Phibbs said the bar wouldn’t offer brunches immediately. He would only open on select Sundays — maybe for the NFL playoffs or a big NASCAR race.
Still, he wants the flexibility. In December, he couldn’t serve alcohol on New Year’s Eve because it fell on a Sunday.
Eventually, he believes his restaurant and others could become the destination for a relaxing, late Sunday morning meal.
Right now, he said, people either drive to Chattanooga or stay home.
“We would definitely like to get into some of that,” he said.
This being the rural South, Walker County was slow to adopt alcohol ordinances. The county didn’t allow restaurants to sell liquor by the drink at all until a referendum passed in May 2014. Phibbs began serving alcohol in January 2015. He said undercover officers hung out at the bar, eyeing whether the restaurant allowed any wayward activity.
State law allows restaurants to serve alcohol on Sundays after 12:30 p.m. But in May, Gov. Nathan Deal signed a “brunch bill” into law, which pushes the start time up to 11 a.m. Local voters have to approve this change in referendums.
Nearby, Catoosa County Attorney Clifton “Skip” Patty and Whitfield County Attorney Robert Smalley said they have not heard from their respective commissions about whether they want to put a similar referendum on their ballot. Officials in some North Georgia cities said the issue has not come up with them, either.
Walker County Economic and Community Development Director Robert Wardlaw said the bill would bring in more revenue for the county. With alcohol sales Monday through Saturday, he said, the county takes in about $260,000 a year in tax revenue. He believes Sunday sales could mean a 20 percent bump.
He also believes this could bring better business to the county.
“High-end restaurants do not want to come to places where they do not have the ability to offer their full menu on the weekends, when people travel and people visit,” he said. “As we continue to grow as a community and expand and look forward instead of looking backwards, these are the things that matter.”
Added Whitfield: “This is the United States of America, where it is a free country for people to be able to make those freedom choices that they want to make.”
During the public comment session, resident Tony Jackson said Whitfield should not put this issue on the ballot because voters already rejected it. In November 2014, voters rejected Sunday sales of alcohol, 6,627-5,827.
“I’m against alcohol sales, period,” he said. “I’d just as soon it be gone, period.”
Also on Thursday, Whitfield put a second referendum on the ballot, allowing stores to sell beer and wine on Sundays. The county currently allows sales Monday through Saturday.
About 30 minutes later, one block away, the LaFayette City Council voted 3-0 to put three referendums on the ballot: one to let stores sell beer and wine on Sundays, one to let restaurants sell distilled spirits Monday through Saturday and one to let restaurants sell beer and wine on Sundays.
Councilmen Ben Bradford and Wayne Swanson missed Thursday’s meeting. Councilman Chris Davis said the resolutions will help local gas stations and convenience stores and potentially spark a hint of night life in the city.
“This is a direction we need to go,” he said. “… That would just really help our existing businesses maintain and grow their businesses.”
City Manager David Hamilton said Georgia cities cannot allow restaurants to sell distilled spirits on Sunday until they already have a law on the books allowing for those sales Monday through Saturday. So any measure on that issue is at least one election away.
“High-end restaurants do not want to come to places where they do not have the ability to offer their full menu on the weekends ...” – WALKER COUNTY ECONOMIC AND COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR ROBERT WARDLAW