The Mahomet Chamber of Commerce is gathering signatures to put it to the voters - should alcohol sales be allowed within the city limits?
Seems to me it would be awful nice for Mahomet residents to be able to pick up a case a beer at the IGA. Also, the ability to sell wine would definately make a nice restaurant downtown move viable. Sales tax reciepts would increase, and property tax receipts would likely follow.
On the flip side, Mahomet is a city chock full o kids -  bars in town would seem to increase the risk of drunk drivers.  The city may need to increase police patrols during prime drinking/driving hours.
Thoughts?ÂÂ
Anyone from Sidney or St. Joe that thinks allowing alcohol sales in your town has been a bad thing?
Passing this is critical if the people of Mahomet would like to attract business and reduce the burden on residential property taxes. Downtown sucks, plain and simple. Very little shopping. Retail won't come here unless there are better places to eat. Better places to eat won't come here unless they can serve alcohol (due to low margins on food). Fairly simple.
There are already areas just outside of the township where people can go for booze, so I see little increased risk by passing this. Besides, the town can still decide who gets a permit and who doesn't. Don't want a tavern downtown? Don't give them a license.
As for the kids, the guy circulating the petition is the former principal of Lincoln Trail and a stand-up guy. I guarantee he wouldn't do anything that would jeopardize kids. I imagine he's already got that covered with the new village administrator and the PD.
a stand-up guy. I guarantee he wouldn't do anything that would jeopardize kids
Just like a US Congressman
Very classy of you to compare someone who dedicated his life to educating kids with a low-life.
Lee's a great guy.
I was a kid in his school when he was principal. I graduated with his oldest son. I've worked in many, many different times and locations with his youngest son in the military. All three of them are upstanding, hardworking folks, and all of them were volunteer firemen at one time or another. Lee and the youngest are still volunteers, the oldest is now a professional fireman. There's nothing but good juju and die-hard, dedicated public service to the community coming from that family.
Mahomet is in dire need of business. If there's any DUI rate change to happen, it will be lowered because folks will no longer be driving out to LOW or CU from within city limits to have a drink and some food.
Comparing Jessup to a politician of any type is like equating Ghandi with the holocaust.
I think the genie is out of the bottle (pun definitely intended) with respect to the use of alcohol in Mahomet. Other than increased sales tax revenue and the possibility of a little night life, nothing is going to change. I would note that alcohol is sold in lots of places now and the instance of kids being mowed down by drunk drivers is still pretty rare.
My favorite Mahomet story:
Immediately following the end of federal prohibition in the 1930s, Mahomet went to being "wet" for a brief time. Nothing horrible happened, except that many wives didn't like their husbands' drinking, and so this probably caused some domestic discord. Then came WWII, and the men of Mahomet answered the call, left their homes, and went off to war to fight for democracy and the American way of life. While the men were gone, the women of Mahomet voted to make Mahomet "dry". I'm sure the men of Mahomet were happy to come home anyway, but many were unhappy to learn what had happened in their absence. The men tried to undo the local prohibition at the ballot box, but these "wets" lost to the "dries" in repeated town votes over the years. The most recent attempt by the wets was in the 1990s, but to this day, alcohol sales still are illegal in Mahomet.
If we get alcohol sales, maybe we can get riverboat gambling on the Sangamon!
Lee Jessup was my boss for many years and he is tireless in his advocacy of all things Mahomet. I haven't heard Mahomet citizens talking about this issue yet (at least at school). Not sure what the sentiment is.
wet willie, that is a great story. If that is truly the source of Mahomet's current "dry" state (not some great religious movement or response to some tragedy), then it doesn't seem there should be much emotional pull to keep things as they are.
and Willie...the last vote was in 1973.
You are correct, YR. I was remembering a petition effort begun by the Mahomet Chamber of Commerce in 1998. Apparently, they planned to put it on the ballot in April 1999, but didn't go through with it, for some reason.
Here's the article:
http://www.news-gazette.com/ngsearch/index.cfm?&page=displyStory.cfm&yearfolder=the98news&file=091398%5Fngstory%5F3470%2Etxt&search=mahomet%20AND%20alcohol&theorder=allwords
Mahomet area is essentially wet currently. The 'ole timers' go to the 'club' downtown to drink (formed when the city went 'dry' years ago) and the 'newbies' go to the several drinking establishments just outside the city limits. One should remember that the city limits does not extend North of I-74, so Lake of the Woods area is wet.
By keeping the City of Mahomet 'dry' they are assured that there will be no 'fine dining' establishments within the city limits.
Maybe Lee should run for mayor the one we have now is useless.
If Mahomet does go 'wet', the Mayor and Village board/council will have a very important job in creating a policy for alcohol licensing. Do they have unlimited licenses with little cost, or do take a more active roll? Cheaper licenses for restaurants?
I am sure there are many opinions as to HOW the town should go 'wet'.
Mahomet can allow alcohol without any additional patrols by the Mahomet Road Rangers - they park in the middle of the medians at night just waiting for people to drive by after having a drink or two - they more than amply have the patrols under control.
As for making Mahomet "wet", it would be the best chance to begin the commerial growth that Mahomet has lacked for the past 2 decades. Instead of having a nice restaurant at the corner of 150 and Interstate 74, the only thing they could attract is a backhoe dealer on the most prime piece of commercial property in town.
I just drove by there and thought that would have been a good location for a hotel of some kind. But that's just me.