By the end of September, a new policy may equalize the differences in alcohol sales between NavarreBeach and the rest of the South Santa Rosa County Tourist Development District established nearly 25 years ago. Monday’s discussion set up the expected opposition lines, but Thursday the BOCC continued forward by moving to hold a public hearing on the issue before a BOCC vote.
District 4 Commissioner Rob Williamson brought the issue before the board on the heels of the Holley Navarre Water System announcing a yearlong 50 percent reduction in tap fees for new businesses. Williamson said these fees and the mainland’s alcohol policy are two complaints he’s heard against new business developing in the south end of the county.
Right now, Navarre Beach businesses enjoy being able to serve customers alcohol until 2:30 a.m. every day of the week, while mainland businesses still in the South SRC tourist district are restricted to selling until midnight Monday through Saturday, noon to midnight on Sunday. Williamson’s proposed ordinance would allow the mainland to operate under the same hours as NavarreBeach.
Monday, Commissioner Bob Cole suggested equalizing the policy by eliminating Sunday alcohol sales in the entire county. “As far as I'm concerned I follow a Bible that says the Sabbath day is the Lord's day and we should keep it holy,” he said. Cole worried changing the current policy would be a “slippery slope,” eventually seeing “people from the north end” asking for a change, he said.
A Navarre resident speaking before the board Monday, Tim Cohain, said he’s Catholic but cautioned Cole against “imposing religious values on everyone. Sunday is not the Sabbath in every religion. If you’re Jewish, Sunday is not the Sabbath. So, I think we should avoid bringing religion into the issue.”
James Sheib, general manager of Helen Back in Navarre, said the change in this policy would benefit his business since hotels without food service all night send guests to Helen Back. He also said, “If we were to ban alcohol sales on Sunday I can almost assure you that we would not be able to operate there and you lose a valuable business providing 25 jobs and tens of thousands of dollars in tax revenue.”
Ira Mae Bruce of Island View Realty, a SRC commissioner during the signing of the original ordinance creating the tourist district and establishing the alcohol sales restrictions, described the difficulty trying to please religious citizens and the business owners during Monday’s meeting. “We made a pretty good decision that made everybody mad at us,” she said.
Thursday’s discussion of the issue was brief save for Cole saying he was in favor of the public hearing to get citizen response to the step the county is considering, which does not require a referendum according to county attorney Roy Andrews. Bob Hartley, current president of the Navarre Area Board of Realtors also read a statement on behalf of NABOR in unanimous support of creating “a fair and equitable policy that governs liquor sales in SouthSanta RosaCounty.”
This article originally appeared on Santa Rosa Press Gazette: BOCC discuss new alcohol policy in south SRC