LITTLE ROCK — At least one restaurant in northern Sharp County is already serving drinks now.
But spirits aren’t high in the rest of the county as officials and law enforcement officers prepare for more alcohol since the northeast Arkansas county voted to go “wet” in November.
Aldermen in three Sharp County towns will propose ordinances to regulate the times alcohol can be sold in their towns, and Cave City Police Chief Aaron Presser wants to hire an additional officer to help enforce what he expects will be a surge in alcohol-related crime.
Sharp County voters approved the sale of alcohol on Nov. 6 by a vote of 3,884 in favor to 3,456 votes against. The county had prohibited alcohol sales since 1945 when it voted to go “dry.”
Benton and Madison counties in Northwest Arkansas also voted to allow alcohol sales last month.
Patrons of the Pig and Whistle on Main Street in Hardy began buying beer with their meals on Friday. It was the first restaurant in the county since the election to serve alcohol. At least two other restaurant owners in the scenic tourist town along the Spring River have indicated they would also apply for alcohol permits.
And the Wal-Mart Supercenter in Highland has applied with the state’s Alcoholic Beverage Control to sell beer. The agency is reviewing the application, along with 62 other requests from Madison and Benton counties.
Sharp County can also have four liquor stores. The state allows the number of package stores based upon a 1-store-to-4,000-people ratio. Sharp County has a population of 17,264.
While campaigning for the measure this fall, proponents touted the economic benefits they said alcohol sales would bring the county.
But law enforcement officials believe it will cost departments more money to patrol for alcohol-related crimes.
Presser has asked aldermen for an additional officer once alcohol begins to proliferate in the county. Although no package businesses have applied for permits so far, Presser expects one will be built in Cave City along U.S. 167 because of its close proximity to Batesville and Independence County, where alcohol sales are prohibited.
Cave City’s Police Department has three officers in addition to Presser. The chief said an additional officer’s annual salary and benefits, another police vehicle, gasoline, and maintenance and other expenses could cost up to $100,000 initially.
“I voted against it,” Presser said of the alcohol measure. “I knew what to expect.”
Presser has developed an ordinance that regulates the times alcohol would be sold in his town.
The towns of Ash Flat and Hardy have also discussed such regulations.
“We’re concerned about sales in the historic downtown,” said Hardy Alderman Margaret Harness. “We have people who live on Main Street. We don’t want people buying alcohol at 2 a.m. We want to be reasonable, but we have to keep in mind there are people who live very close to these restaurants. The noise level has to be kept at a reasonable level.
“We want to protect what we have,” Harness said.
The debate over allowing alcohol sales is not new in Sharp County. But it took proponents four years and three attempts to place the issue on the county ballot.
The group Save Energy, Reap Taxes formed in 2008 and touted the tax benefits of selling alcohol in Sharp County. One member, Ruth Reynolds of Cherokee Village, also said alcohol sales in the county would eliminate residents’ long drives to other counties to buy alcohol and thus reduce vehicle emissions.
The group’s first attempt to call for an election fell short. A Sharp County circuit judge ruled that 461 signatures collected on a petition were invalid, leaving the Save Energy, Reap Taxes group short of the required number needed to call for the vote.
Two years later, memberscollected enough signatures, but turned them in a week after the deadline.
This time, members gathered a sufficient amount of signatures and met the deadline, successfully placing the issue on the county’s ballot.
“Third time’s a charm,” Reynolds had said after the signatures were certified.
The November election was hotly contested. Reynolds drove across Sharp County and registered voters while promoting alcohol sales.
Residents - especially those in the northern half of Sharp County - placed yard signs with the message, “Let’s Go Wet.”
On the southern end, signs appeared against the measure that included statistics taken from a University of Arkansas at Fayetteville study that compared crimes per capita in wet and dry counties.
Voting followed suit.
Cherokee Village voters, including Reynolds, favored alcohol sales by a 624-vote margin, 1,254 votes in favor to 630 against. Cave City voters had the largest opposition, voting 580 against to 306 in favor.
Hardy and Highland and the voting precincts of Ozark, Upper North, Lower North and Morgan - all in the northern portion of Sharp County - favored the sales.
“I don’t think this alienates us from the rest of the county,” Cherokee Village Mayor Lloyd Hefley said of his town’s overwhelming support for the measure. “It’s been a long, drawn-out process that has gotten a lot of support up here.
“Folks in Cherokee Village will come out to vote anytime there’s an election, one way or another,” Hefley said.
The town, located west of Hardy, is a community primarily made up of northern retirees.
“Blame it on the Yankees,” Hefley joked. “If it got on the ballot the first time [in 2008] it would not have passed. But a lot of people worked on the alcohol campaign since then and got their word out. This process was more than just putting a name in the hat. This wasn’t something you do over night. It took a lot of time and work throughout the entire county.”
Hefley said he anticipates his council will also develop an ordinance that will regulate the times of alcohol sales.
“I don’t anticipate any problems,” he said. “The county’s voters have spoken.”
Arkansas, Pages 11 on 12/25/2012