I live in blue ridge and while I am kind of neautral in this issue ,I do know the devastating effects of alcohol .If the good people want to tyry to minimize the effect of alcohol on their community ,then good for them .

This is all the more reason why some issues should not be left to local government to decide. Alcohol and Firearms regulations in particular should end at the state level, so there will be a uniform set of laws all across Georgia. Most local governments are too incompetent to deal with the important issues, find themselves influenced too much by a minority of a small local constituency rather than a broader (more moderate) influence - and its best to have more uniformity across the entire state rather than a patchwork of silly regulations from county to county and city to city. Georgia seems to have taken care of it with regard to Firearms. Now why can’t they just do the same thing with alcohol regulation? Maybe its time to reach out to some legislators from other, more tolerant regions of the state and see if anything can be done to work correcting it. If it ain’t getting done in Blue Ridge, see what can be done in Atlanta!

There is an upside here. I actually enjoy being able to go to the one or 2 decent places to eat in Fannin Co and bring my own bottle. There is a slight hassle factor, but it saves me quite a bit on the overall check. You can buy a good bottle of wine for about 30% of what a restaurant will sell it to you. Either way, I still get wine with my meal.

John,

You forget we are talking about the state of Georgia when you talk about statewide control. We have a governor and senior elected officials that think the same way as the elected officials of Blue Ridge and Fannin County. No alcohol on Sundays… unless you build a stadium for a minor league baseball team or own a limo business and want to serve drinks going to the game. Other than these venues, people are not responsible enough to purchase alcohol on Sundays. Oh, I forgot. The city of Atlanta got Sunday sales of alcohol approved by the state many years ago so all of the conventioneers in town would be happy on Sunday.

I have known the owner of one of the largest liquor stores in the state since elementary school. He is very active in Georgia politics and does not want his store open on Sundays. His reason is so his employees can go to church. My answer is - no one says you must be open on Sunday. I’m sure he knows he will not significantly increase weekly sales if he opens on Sunday. He will only shift sales from Saturday or Monday and will have increased expenses being open 7 days a week. So he is better off keeping all alcohol retailers closed on Sunday.

Local governments may be incompetent. But state governments have too many special interests.

I think we are talking about two entirely different issues here. You are talking about the package sales of alcohol, which is prohibited statewide (including in the City of Atlanta) on Sundays. I cannot go in a supermarket in downtown and buy a six pack of beer, just as I can’t in Blue Ridge or Savannah or Valdosta. This is what some package store owners are against, for the reasons you state. However, what I was referring to and what the issue is in Blue Ridge and Fannin County relates to the sale of Alcohol BY THE DRINK in food service establishment for ON PREMISE CONSUMPTION. This is where the issue of tourism is strongly correlated.

Tourism is Georgia’s second largest industry (by the overall amount if money it brings into the state economy - this is a fact) - it is larger than any manufacturing, construction or other service industry by total dollars contributed to the Georgia economy. If visitors are being denied the ability to purchase what they want to drink with their meals while spending money in our state on tourism, then it make sense that they will choose to spend their money elsewhere. Of course, that would please some of the VOCAL MINORITY in Fannin, but it hurts far more people than it helps locally. It prevents job creation, construction spending and recurring tax revenue that otherwise will have to come out of local taxpayers pockets via higher property taxes and sales taxes.

The State of Georgia has a statewise vested interest in promoting tourism throughout our state - its our second largest industry after all. Any local issues that prevent the growth of this critical industry in an area with the tourism appeal and visitor traffic of the North Georgia Mountains is a detriment to our entire state and hurts ALL OF GEORGIA - not just Fannin County and/or Blue Ridge.

Our state level tourism officials and those charged with competitively promoting our state against North Carolina and Tennessee should definetly be an ally in allowing our restaurants to serve beer and wine.

I hope all who are involved will not let this issue be silent - like all other issues in our country that require justice be done, people need to not give up and not sit back and be quiet about it. Keep up the good and just fight and put all the fearmongering “antis” back on the defence where they belong. Enlist help from surrounding communities where they have won the battle (Ellijay and Dahlonega can probably teach Fannin a thing or two - learn from them). And go seek help in Atlanta if need be - that’s where the REAL power in the State lies if it can be demonstrated how this issue hurts the state as a whole and not just one little county in N. Georgia. Organize and keep up the pressure. Truth and logic will eventually win out over fear, lies and scare tactics.

John,

I was actually talking about pouring and package in separate paragraphs to show how the State of Georgia changes laws for special interests. This is similar to Blue Ridge and Fannin not changing laws for special interests.

In the first paragraph I mentioned our Governor not wanting any alcohol served or sold on Sundays in our state. Then he signs a law that says Gwinnett County can serve alcohol on Sunday at their new stadium with no requirement on percentage of food sales. In the same law he says limo drivers can also serve alcohol to their customers on Sunday. I wonder, does that mean I can start a limo business in Fannin County and server wine while driving them to and from dinner?

I can remember when you could not buy an alcoholic beverage on Sunday anywhere in the state of Georgia. It was changed when Atlanta wanted to become a convention town and the convention planners balked at the no pouring on Sunday law. So they changed the law for Atlanta only. The rest of Georgia was not allowed to pour on Sunday.

If I recall correctly, Georgia is one of only three states that has a ban on Sunday package sales. I am not pushing for package sales on Sunday. I was only trying to point out that the state of Georgia is almost as backward as Fannin and Blue Ridge. The only way to get it changed in Blue Ridge, Fannin and Georgia is for people to get elected who are not worried about making a career of politics.

For now, check out Dino’s Pub in Copperhill - next to the New York Restaurant. The lady who runs the place has really made it alot nicer lately. Its been really cleaned up and is safe and seems to be getting a lot of decent people from Blairsville and Blue Ridge and from all over these days - with free food on Sundays and they always have the games on TV. The beer and drinks are really reasonable too and they have some more variety than they used to.