NORTHPORT | Sept. 11 will be the first day of legal Sunday alcohol sales in Northport.
On Tuesday, the City Council approved the necessary first reading of a law to reflect in the city code last week’s vote by residents to allow alcohol sales on Sunday between noon and 9:30 p.m. The council will approve the law at its meeting Sept. 6, ushering in Sunday sales five days later.
Mayor Bobby Herndon had hoped that sales would start this Sunday, Sept. 4, the day after the Crimson Tide’s first home football game. But he said that Sept. 11 is better than Sept. 19, the date that had originally been considered the first possible Sunday.
“Sept. 11 will be a new day for Northport,” Herndon said. “It’s a good day to start.”
Herndon and the City Council met Tuesday afternoon to certify the election. William Tunnell, council president, said the first reading of the city ordinance to allow Sunday sales was put on the agenda so the council could approve it next week.
The council is bound by the Aug. 23 special election results, but must change city law to allow Sunday sales.
About 16 percent of registered voters in Northport turned out last week, approving Sunday alcohol sales by a margin of 256 votes. In all, 1,312 people voted yes, and 1,056 voted no.
The election was held the same day as a special election in Tuscaloosa County, where voters rejected Sunday sales. The city of Tuscaloosa prompted the elections in Northport and the rest of the county after voters there approved Sunday sales in a referendum on Feb. 22.
No council members voted against certifying the election or in reading the change to the city code Tuesday. Tunnell, who, along with Councilman Steve Acker, voted against holding the referendum, said he was never convinced Sunday sales would be the boon to Northport’s economy that its proponents claimed. Still, he said he welcomes the change now that voters have approved.
“I hope Northport will benefit from it because you certainly want the benefits if you’re going to have Sunday alcohol sales,” he said.
A positive outcome of the elections for Northport was the county’s rejection of Sunday sales, which could help Northport businesses attract customers from outside the city, Tunnell said.
Herndon, who supported the measure, said the immediate impact of Sunday sales will be putting existing businesses back on a level footing with peers inside Tuscaloosa city. In the longer term, Sunday alcohol sales could help make Northport more attractive to potential businesses.
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