Aldermen to begin drafting changes to city alcohol ordinance

Published 7:30 pm Monday, January 28, 2019

Oxford’s Board of Aldermen agreed to begin drafting changes to an ordinance Monday, concerning on-premise consumption of light wine and beer relating to craft beer sellers.

The board, Oxford Police and a local beer company all weighed in on the matter, and ran through options that were discussed over the last few months.

A potential ordinance change would allow on-premise consumption to visitors staying at neighboring hotels near Jackson Beer Company, while also allowing the company to sell beer to visitors staying at those neighboring hotels.

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The biggest concern the board ran into was how enforcing any ordinance changes, or giving a permit to the Jackson Beer Company, allowing customers to drink on the premises while shopping, would open up similar beer and liquor stores to the same rules.

However, any changes also have to fall in line with the City of Oxford’s rule that requires a permit from the Alcohol Beverage Control.

To get around this, ideas were floated throughout the meeting, such as having a specific number requirement of beer taps, only serving on-premises alcohol until 9 p.m. or awarding a permit based on how much beer sales make up a store’s sales percentage.