The Rome City Commissioners have approved two amendments to alcohol ordinances, but the votes were not unanimous.
First Amendment: Food-to-Drink Ratio
The first amendment maintains the 50-50 food-to-drink ratio for alcohol sales and does not allow any future exceptions. However, three current establishments can keep their existing variances.
- Old Havana can count tobacco sales toward the ratio.
- Alibi Prohibition and Combat Market can count gun sales due to their variances.
- Elevation Cigar House, recently granted a variance, can also count premium tobacco sales.
This amendment allows these businesses to transfer their licenses, sell, or relocate.
Commissioner Mark Cochran voted against it, while Commissioner Bill Collins abstained. Cochran expressed concerns about the effectiveness of controlling alcohol sales through food consumption when some restaurants serve alcohol without food.
Second Amendment: Food Truck Sales
The second amendment permits food truck sales to count toward the 50-50 ratio if the sales go through the establishment’s cash register and if the food trucks support an existing kitchen.
The vote for this amendment was 5 to 3, with Commissioners Jamie Doss, Randy Quick, Wayne Robinson, and Harry Brock, along with Mayor Craig McDaniel, voting in favor. Commissioners Jim Bojo, Elaina Beeman, and Mark Cochran voted against it.
Cochran remarked that it seems like a problem that isn’t really occurring but is being created by these changes
