Alcohol-sales propositions are on a number of local ballots

Along with voting for president, senator and railroad commissioner, many local voters will be asked on Election Day whether they want to choose booze.

Southlake, Roanoke, Irving, Fort Worth and Weatherford are among the latest cities with ballot propositions aimed at easing the rules on alcohol sales.

Texas voters have participated in more than 300 alcohol elections since a law enacted in 2003 made it easier for such measures to be put on the ballot, according to the Texas Hospitality Association.

The measures have usually been orchestrated by area convenience stores and supermarkets saying they are at a competitive disadvantage if they can’t sell beer or wine.

"We work with grocery stores that are fighting for their life to stay viable in a community," said Sissy Day, a managing partner of Texas Petition Strategies, which manages petition campaigns for the likes of Kroger, Albertsons, Wal-Mart and 7-Eleven.

Her firm will launch a campaign to reach voters in several cities with alcohol elections this week, she said.

City officials from several area cities that have allowed more alcohol sales in the past few years said they have seen no serious problems and have not had to increase city spending to address any new issues. None could show how much the measures have affected sales tax revenue because their sales tax data don’t break out alcohol sales.

Weatherford Councilwoman Jan Barton is a member of Weatherford Citizens Moving Forward, a group that got the necessary petition signatures to put two propositions on the Nov. 4 ballot. She said the extra tax dollars from alcohol sales could be used for road repairs and other city services.

"I don’t even drink, but I know we are missing out on a larger tax base," she said.

In Burleson, Mayor Ken Shetter credits the existence of a 14-screen movie theater and several restaurants to lifting the ban on alcohol sales.

A high cost

But opponents have defeated wet-dry propositions by predicting a litany of bad consequences, including an increase in drunken driving and other crimes, prompting cities to have to spend more tax dollars to keep the problems under control.

Opponents are also concerned about how easing rules on alcohol sales may change the quality of life.

"I think there is an acceptance and an understanding that alcohol is here to stay, but there is a social reality and a social cost," said the Rev. Charles Bruner, pastor of Grace First Presbyterian Church in Weatherford.

Bruner said communities need to consider the moral implications of alcohol use, such as broken families and deaths caused by drunken driving.

The Rev. Ron Johns, pastor of Oakridge Church of Christ in Willow Park, where beer and wine are sold in convenience stores, also hopes that voters will look beyond the dollar signs to consider the consequences of alcohol use.

"You want to bring in alcohol for more tax revenue, but what are you going to do for the families that are struggling with alcohol? We as a community need to be addressing that," Johns said.

One more time

Irving resident and real estate developer Greg Rabin doesn’t drink, but if he wanted to buy a six-pack, he’d have to travel to cities such as Grapevine, Dallas or Addison.

Irving residents can now buy alcoholic drinks only at restaurants. Voters rejected two previous attempts to allow alcohol sales in the city.

"It seems kind of a waste that if residents do desire to buy beer or wine, they can’t go to their local grocery store," said Rabin, who said he plans to open a shopping development in Las Colinas in 2011. Any grocery store in the development would see greater revenue if it could sell beer and wine, he said.

But Dennis Webb, who has lived in Irving for 44 years, said the city’s family-friendly reputation would be hurt by alcohol sales at supermarkets and convenience stores.

"I’ve heard people say one of the reasons they moved to Irving from places like Dallas was because alcohol was not sold here," said Webb, a member of Irving First, a group campaigning against the alcohol proposition.