week of 1/22/03
 
 
 
  Canton restaurants preparing for beer, mixed drink sales
By Scott McLeod

Class A Restaurants
° 36 interior seats
° Minimum of 40 percent food sales, maximum of 60 percent alcohol sales
° Cooking and refrigeration equipment


The economic impact many predicted would accompany the sale of on-premise alcohol in Canton may already under way.

At the Sagebrush Steakhouse and Saloon, architects will be in this week to design a bar. Construction — which means jobs for craftsmen and the purchase of wood and other materials — will start immediately and hopefully be completed within a couple of weeks, said manager Eric Wilson.

And throughout the small east Haywood town, alcohol distributors have been working the streets, trying to get restaurant owners to sell their brand and to install the extra refrigeration and cooling equipment needed for beer sales. All this follows the success last week of the referendum for on-premise beer and mixed drink sales.

“All along, we said it would be like throwing a rock in a pond. We are confident the ripple effect of this will be good for Canton,” said Smathers.

And Smathers emphasizes the impact will spread throughout the town. As more restaurants open, foot traffic and vehicle traffic will increase, which will help those who sell other goods.

“In the last two days, we’ve had two contacts from potential restaurants,” said Smathers. “One is alcohol, and one does not sell alcohol.

Wilson hopes Sagebrush can begin serving alcohol within two weeks, but he and others were going to find out more about that at a meeting Tuesday afternoon, Jan. 21, from 4-6 p.m. in the courtroom at town hall. That meeting was called by the Alcohol Law Enforcement officer for this region, Sam Darakjy.

“I want to take the applications and the paperwork to get them started,” said Darakjy. “We’ll give them all the information they need.”

Once the applications are ready, they will be forwarded to the ABC commission in Raleigh for initial approval. Those whose applications are in order will receive a temporary permit. Final permits are issued after Darakjy makes an on-site inspection to check the accuracy of information provided in the applications. He said he expects all the restaurants applying for permits to get their license on the same day.

While Smathers is excited about the economic opportunity for Canton, he also realizes it will take a while to change people’s perceptions.

“That family who travels twice a year from the Ohio Valley to Savannah or someplace like that might notice a few more restaurants or a new hotel, or just the construction, their first time through. The next time they might see the finished product and stop. It’s just gonna take time, but I’m really optimistic about what this will do,” said Smathers.