There was no need to hear any arguments for or against a referendum on Sunday package sales of beer or wine in the county after all. At the start of the meeting, Walton County Commission Chairman read a short statement advising that it would "not be timely." The county had been advised by the Secretary of State's office that it was already in the process of preparing the ballots for the general election and it was effectively too late.
"There will not be a General Election in Walton County in 2013 so the first opportunity this can be considered will be 2014," Little said.
Commissioners were expecting a large crowd and there had been three people who had signed up to speak out on the issue, but that was no longer necessary. Walton County is surrounded by other jurisdictions that allow for the sale of alcohol on a Sunday, both by the drink and by the package, but the county doesn’t allow for either.
“We were approached by several convenience store owners in the county. We have 23 stores in the unincorporated area that are affected,” Little said prior to the meeting. “All the cities have passed it and so this leaves the stores in the county with a economically disadvantage."
That won't change now until at least after 2014.
