Alcohol ordinance in place before Nov. 2 referendum

If voters approve alcohol sales in Hartselle, the city will be able to move quickly on rules and regulations on where it will be available – all it will have to do is put its own draft ordinance into place.
After reviewing similar ordinances from Arab, Athens, Decatur and Falkville, as well as its own proposed ordinance from 2002, city officials formulated the draft proposal. The ordinance could then go into effect if alcohol sales are approved Nov. 2.
One thing for certain, city leaders are making it clear they don’t want bars or nightclubs in the city. The ordinance said “the council intends that no establishment whose primary source of revenue is thee sale of alcohol beverages for consumption on the premises…should be licensed to do business in the city.”
According to the ordinance, this is “in keeping with the overwhelming will of the people of the city…”
Such provisions could be changed with a three-member vote of the City Council. However, Mayor Dwight Tankersley said the mayor could overrule that vote, a move that would require four council members approve any changes.
The ordinance stipulates no alcohol sales will be allowed within 500 feet of a church, school, nursing home, assisted living or child development facility. Exceptions would be if the store selling alcohol was in existence before any of the excluded facilities opened; if it’s a grocery store; if it’s located within the Central Business District; or if it the two facilities face different streets or are separated by a highway. Exceptions could also be made by the City Alcohol License Review Committee if they determine enough of a barrier exists. The committee would be comprised of the City Clerk, Chief of Police, Department of Development Director and Fire Chief.
The ordinance also prohibits two businesses selling alcohol for on-premise consumption being located within 500 feet of each other, except those located in the Central Business District, as well as stipulating the size and amount of food that must be sold before a restaurant can sell alcohol.
Alcohol sales would not be allowed from midnight to 8 a.m. Monday- Saturday and midnight on Sunday to 8 a.m. the following Monday.
Once approved, the ordinance will be posted on the city’s website at www.hartselle.org and on www.hartselleenquirer.com.