The Pearl Board of Aldermen voted against the people on Tuesday, choosing to reject a citizen-approved ordinance that would have allowed liquor stores to open inside city limits.
Back in June, nearly 60% of residents who cast ballots in the municipal election approved a non-binding referendum to allow the Jackson suburb in Rankin County to have liquor and wine shops. But, as previously reported by SuperTalk Mississippi News, the board of aldermen had the final say.
With that power in hand, a 5-2 vote was cast during Tuesday’s meeting to block the ordinance from going into effect. The board could have set the rules on the number of stores, how they look, or where they’re located, but instead, decided to vote down the ordinance in its entirety.
Pearl Mayor Jake Windham, who personally didn’t agree with liquor stores opening but encouraged the board to approve the ordinance based on citizen vote, told WLBT he wasn’t pleased with the board’s decision.
“A 60-40 turnout in an election, that’s a pretty good whooping,” he said. “We can’t ever forget our people’s voices within our cities.”
Roughly 59.2%, or 1,198 voters, were in favor of wine and spirit stores to begin opening with restrictions on brick-and-mortar designs. Around 40.8%, or 827 voters, stood against the measure.
Rankin County, where Pearl resides, is still classified as a “dry” county, meaning liquor sales are not allowed without special approval under Mississippi’s hodgepodge set of alcohol laws. However, Pearl attained resort status in 2011, allowing restaurants to sell wine and liquor by the glass, and has beer sales inside convenience stores and supermarkets.
With the board’s vote, residents will still have to travel to neighboring municipalities to purchase their favorite bottle of wine or whiskey.
“One of the things you strive for as mayor or an elected official…is you don’t want retail leakage,” Windham said when speaking to the TV station. “We’re the largest city in Rankin County. We shouldn’t have to go anywhere for any type of goods.”
