Petitioners plan to ask McComb officials to consider allowing liquor sales in restaurants on Sundays.
Rachel James organized the petition and collected signatures from representatives of local restaurants, including Santa Fe Cattle Co., Applebee’s, Guapo’s Sports Bar & Grill, El Dorado Mexican Bar & Grill, The Juicy Seafood, El Sombrero Mexican Restaurant and Tortilla Soup Irresistible Mexican Restaurant all signed the request asking for McComb to allow liquor sales on Sundays. Representatives from some of the businesses had no comment about the matter when reached Friday.
James, a sales representative for Majestic Designs in McComb, which carves designs into blocks, bricks and stone, said she entertains customers on Sundays and some of them would like to be able to order liquor.
Restaurants can sell beer in McComb from 7 a.m. to midnight Mondays through Saturdays and noon to midnight Sundays. Liquor can only be sold Monday through Saturday.
James is on the agenda for Tuesday’s city board work session and plans to ask officials to pass an ordinance that would allow restaurant liquor sales on Sundays.
“It’s an interest of the local community that does entertain customers on Sunday that do like to partake in alcoholic beverages,” she said. “It’s more of an interest for your local businesses for their revenues, not only in alcohol, but in food sales because if you have more people coming, they’re also going to sell food. It also generates more tax revenue for the city of McComb.”
James cited an article from the Brookhaven Daily Leader that mentioned three changes Brookhaven officials made with an ordinance that passed Oct. 18 allowing liquor stores to stay open from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday through Saturday, extending operating hours by two hours.
The ordinance will also allow beer to be sold at convenience and grocery stores from noon to midnight on Sundays. In the past, beer could not be sold at either place on Sundays.
The ordinance also allows liquor by the glass to be served in restaurants from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sundays, which was not permitted in the past.
State law forbids the sale of liquor at liquor stores on Sundays.
James said passing an ordinance to allow will help McComb keep up with communities such as Brookhaven and Natchez, which allow restaurant liquor sales on Sundays.
“I just think it’s going to bring us more up to date with our sister cities,” she said.
Mayor Quordiniah Lockley said he’s familiar with Brookhaven’s changes, but was not sure if McComb should do something similar.
“Right now, I just don’t have any opinion on whether or not we need to open our restaurants and bars on Sundays,” he said. “I have to do some groundwork, talk to some of my constituents and see what they think about this.”
