Council Approves Sunday Sales

The Dalton City Council gives the green light for Sunday liquor by the drink sales, and now many local restaurant owners say they expect to see a boom in sales in just a matter of days.

Sunday liquor by the drink sales are legal now in Dalton, and for Applebee's manager Tiffany Gordon, it's been a long time coming.

Gordon: "We've got several things that we've been wanting to do for forever now, and so now is a great opportunity to be able to start some of those specials for the public."

Start those specials, she says, and hopefully start up some more sales.  Gordon says she expects Sunday business to soar soon, all because people can now have a drink with dinner.  For smaller, independently-owned restaurants, the news means the possibility of more local interest.

Mario Collantes, Garcia's Restaurant: "If we sell alcohol here on Sundays, then people are going to stay here in town, they don't have to drive all the way to Chattanooga."

And Gordon says she's looking forward to telling the travelers from I-75 coming through Dalton that they can order liquor with their meals.  She says before, it was a struggle with the customers.

Gordon: "A lot of people didn't understand it and it was really difficult explaining to the travelers that you know, we don't do that, it's just against the law."

Dalton Mayor Ray Elrod says the vote was cut and dry in spite of previous controversy surrounding the issue.  Voters approved the ordinance with just 54 percent of the vote.  He says city council based their decision on what the citizens voted in the November election.

Elrod: "Majority rules and we felt like that's what the community wanted us to do and so that's what we did."

Their unanimous vote is the news local restaurants have been waiting for -- and they won't have to wait much longer to start pouring those drinks.  The new law goes into effect in just five days.