Duluth, Norcross OK Public Vote on Sunday Alcohol Sales

Updated July 14, 2011

It's official. Duluth and Norcross officials voted Monday to place referendums on Sunday packaged-alcohol sales on the Nov. 8 ballot.

The Duluth City Council had informally agreed at its April 25 work session to place the referendum on the city ballot if Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal signed Senate Bill 10 into law, and the governor did so. The law became effective July 1.

Suwanee, Lilburn, Loganville, Dacula, Braselton, Auburn and Sugar Hill are other Gwinnett County cities that will allow Sunday packaged-alcohol sales referendums in November.

If approved by a majority vote, the referendums would authorize retailers that already allow package sales of beer, wine and distilled spirits to sell alcoholic beverages from 12:30 p.m. to 11:30 p.m. on Sundays.

In Norcross, there was also some discussion about the balance of beer and wine to foodstuffs in convenience stores, the primary places that beer and wine are sold in the City of Norcross. Stores must sell at least 51 percent food to keep their license, pointed out City Manager Rudolph Smith. If the store has increased alcohol sales from the extra day, it must balance the scale by selling more food.

“They better drop the price of bread,” joked Councilmember David McLelroy in the work-policy discussion.

Smith said that if the city audited a store selling beer and wine and found the balance out of whack, it would issue a warning, and then give the store six months to get up to speed.