MARSHALL COUNTY, Ala (WHNT) — It’s been more than five months since residents voted to allow alcohol sales in the unincorporated areas of Marshall County.
The county commission has been working to clear the way for sales. They have formed an alcohol review board, crafted an application, and studied how other communities make it work.
District One Commissioner Ronny Shumate said the final step is conducting public hearings.
“First, the applicant has to apply for the county, and we start doing some background checks along with the state board of alcohol, and they look into everybody,” he said. “Then we notify the people around the area and let them know that the applicant has applied to sell alcohol in their area.”
The hearings take place at the bi-weekly county commission meetings. Shumate said they are open to everyone, and the hearings give the public a chance to tell commissioners whether they believe an individual or business should or should not be allowed to sell alcohol.
“They have to pass all the requirements that we’ve set forth about the sizes of the building, the locations, whether they meet our safety requirements and then the background checks.. we clear them, then the state clears them,” said Shumate.
Shumate said they set up strict rules for the distinction between beer and wine sales and liquor sales.
“You have to file a different application to sell the liquor,” he said. “You have to have a different address. You have to have a different way to go in. You can’t go from one building and enter the liquor building. You have to go outside and go around and go into it… currently with our regulations and the state regulations.”
Once the public hearing is complete, the application then goes to the state ABC board where they will make the final call to grant or deny the license.
Shumate predicts it will be around June when there will be the first official sale of alcohol in Marshall County.
The post Marshall County enters final stages of county-wide alcohol sales appeared first on WHNT.
