Sunday winery sales is a tourism initiative and nothing more

Opinion

November 22, 2008

Nick Lewis The Richmond Register Sat Nov 22, 2008, 06:01 PM EST

Tourism is important to Madison County’s economy and Acres of Land Winery is just one of the many tools available to entice tourists to come and spend a day or two with us. And when they come, they spend money important to economic vitality.

Wineries have a special aura about them and people locally, but more importantly visitors from everywhere and all walks of life are drawn to them. Tourists want to experience what wineries have to offer as well as the beautiful scenery that usually surrounds them. Wineries also have more to offer than just wine and Acres of Land Winery is no different.

Recently, I took some friends visiting from Huntington, W.Va., to dinner there. They were impressed and I believe a little jealous of what we have that they don’t. We do have something special to help grow our tourism industry, but we are not taking full advantage of every tool in our tool box. Wine sales on Sunday at Acres of Land needs to be added to the tool box.

Although the winery is special place, and as wineries go, has a certain mystique of attracting people any day of the week, Acres of Land is at a competitive disadvantage because of the county’s dry policy on Sunday. We need to give every tourist traveling Interstate 75 every incentive possible to spend their money in Madison County.

The current dry policy is limiting our opportunities to grow tourism on one of the most important days of the week. However, the community and Madison Fiscal Court have the opportunity to change that. On Tuesday, the fiscal court will conduct a public hearing on this issue and I encourage all interested citizens to attend.

Based on the outcome of the public forum, the fiscal court will have a decision to make. For many citizens, including members of the fiscal court, selling alcoholic beverages any time is very emotional and controversial, but more so on Sunday as we found out in Richmond last year. However, this issue is much different because it is specific to wineries which help drive tourism and the local economy.

The fiscal court also needs to consider whether our present policy is a deterrent for future growth of wineries in Madison County and the opportunities they will bring. Also, do we want to limit our opportunities for growing tourism in an extremely challenging economy just because it’s an emotional issue? And furthermore, those in opposition need to understand how the wet policy has been vital in bringing eateries, jobs and revenue to Richmond and Madison County.

Another thing to consider is that retail shopping traffic is very dependent on restaurants, especially those that sell alcoholic beverages. So consider this, if Richmond and Madison County were still dry … would the restaurants we patronize as well as the Richmond Centre we will shop at exist today?

As the fiscal court evaluates the results of the public forum, I urge them to approach this issue strictly as an important tool needed to drive tourism. I believe we can all agree that growing tourism is vital to growing Madison County’s economy more now than ever. The fiscal court should realize this issue is really about driving tourism and nothing more.

Nick Lewis is publisher of the Richmond Register. He can be reached at nlewis@cnhi.com or 624-6682.

Text Only

Opinion

Coffee makers and a gaggle of little girls
Our Keurig coffee maker has died and I am grieving big time.
Loretta has washed it out with two gallons of white vinegar — twice — and followed all the instructions that came with the book that tells about cleaning it and all that, but I knew, weeks ago, that cleaning it was like dressing a corpse.

February 3, 2012 1 Photo
Fretting over Christmas choices
Right around now is when people start fretting over creches in the public square and arguing as to whether publicly funded Christmas symbols violate the establishment clause of the First Amendment. And right about now is also when certain Jewish groups begin insisting that the answer is to place a Hanukkah menorah right next to that creche, which leads atheists to complain about a plague on both their houses.

December 21, 2011 1 Photo
Romney bets on old rules as Newt moves under radar
We’re not going to lose in New Hampshire.” So says Mitt Romney’s state coordinator, Jason McBride.
Stuart Stevens, the Romney campaign’s TV ad-maker, expresses similar confidence. Asked if Romney might finish second in New Hampshire, his answer is an unhesitating “no.”

December 16, 2011 1 Photo
Oma Mullins, 97
July 17, 2011
Food tampering laws overdue
In 2009, co-workers say a cook at a Kentucky State Park in Barren County put food down his pants before serving it to a retired Kentucky State Trooper he did not like. The cook was fired and a lawsuit was filed. It does not appear he was charged criminally.

June 19, 2011
Marilyn Monroe never sang to me The Republican governor of South Carolina probably should have a talk with former Kentucky Democrat governor Paul Patton.

Paul might be able to offer some tips on dealing with the extramarital affair recently disclosed after South Carolina’s chief executive vanished for over five days.
July 9, 2009 1 Photo
Making a bad bill worse How do you make a dreadfully bad piece of legislation -- the nearly $900-billion so-called “stimulus” bill -- worse? Simple -- add protectionism.
February 12, 2009 1 Photo
The national Ponzi scheme The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) was set up to combat fraudulent practices. The SEC's website explains that "Ponzi schemes are a type of illegal pyramid scheme named for Charles Ponzi, who duped thousands of New England residents into investing in a postage stamp speculation scheme back in the 1920s.
February 11, 2009 1 Photo
It’s a dog’s life in Barker home Anybody who knows me that my promise to not write about my dog doesn’t hold any water.
February 10, 2009 1 Photo
Family planning is essential The right-wing attack machine went into overdrive last week after House Speaker Nancy Pelosi dared to defend funds for family planning in the House’s stimulus bill.
February 9, 2009 1 Photo
More Opinion Headlines

Opinion

Search Results

Sunday winery sales is a tourism initiative and nothing more

Have you ever attended a meeting of a local government agency or taxing district?

Site Map