The Hopkinsville City Council approved a new ordinance at a special meeting yesterday which would lift restrictions on liquor sales outside of the downtown district. However, several council members were concerned that the current zoning ordinance wouldn’t prevent bars and liquor stores from opening near schools and churches and decided to postpone lifting the restriction until January 1stof 2014.
Chief Financial Officer Robert Martin said this gives the planning commission much more time to find ways to change the zoning ordinance.
“To make a change in the zoning ordinance you have to have public hearings so it’s going to take a while to do this," said Martin. "They’re going to research other communities not only in Kentucky but in other states to see what they do with this respect.”
The ordinance also orders bars to close at 1:30 AM, previously bars could stay open all night but had to stop serving alcohol at 1 AM. Martin said this was a public safety decision as Hopkinsville police had received complaints from the community about patrons staying out all night.
