Many, and justifiably so, do not know the constitutionality of only allowing limited sales of alcohol. The state government has not been able to say what it would take to open a carryout. Would it just take an application, or would it have to be put back on the ballot? As for strip clubs and bars, I would guess that many are scared of the fact that I64 runs through Boyd Co. and would be a prime location for such an establishment.

 

The big problem with the wet/dry vote is, even thought most people are registered Democrats, many people in Boyd Co. are conservative and don't want alcohol sold close to their home. Ashland is a decent sized city, but Boyd Co. is more of a neighborhood community. The City of Ashland already has wet districts, which allows alcohol sales at restaurants that derive a percentage of it's money from food sales, and carryouts. I have heard many people say that Ashland being wet is enough for Boyd Co.

 

This came to a head because of a mall in Boyd Co. that is having trouble surviving, due to lack of interest from possible retailers. Mall management believes that by bringing in bigger restaurants it can boost its revenue. Maybe, I am not sure either way.

 

Disclaimer: I do not live in Boyd Co. but I work in Boyd Co. and have many friends and co-workers who live in Boyd Co. and the above is what I hear from them. The above statements are not meant to voice the opinion of the Boyd Co. voting body and is not necessarily the opinions of the writer, and should only be used to answer the question posed to me to the best of my knowledge.

 

The state government doesn't have to say anything about carryouts or bars or strip clubs, the law states that the ONLY establishments that will be eligible to sell alcohol is restaurants seating 100 or more and having 70% or more revenue from food sales. THAT'S IT...PERIOD!

 

This was not a true wet/dry vote, it is what is known as a "moist" vote. The reasoning is that the large chain restaurants we all enjoy from time to time, will NOT locate in an area unless they are able to serve alcohol. Other than what is already in the county, there could never be a TGIFriday's or Olive Garden out there without it.

 

The mall struggled for years and finally went under and was bought for a song. The current management has done alot to improve the aesthetics and improve the area for new retailers. They Retained Sears and Elder Beerman, brought in Steve & Barry's and the new Phoenix Theater. They have now filled every anchor spot and with the passage of the moist law, should be able to attract some eating establishments. Anything like this that is good for the economy of the local area will be good for the community as a whole.

No. And I would venture to say it will never be, in our life time. Greenup Co. is more of a bed room community (the way I like it) there is not any large cities in Greenup Co. no malls, not many restaurants, other than fast food. Most people that live in Greenup Co. work elsewhere. There are seven cities in Greenup Co. and all are small cities with minimal business districts.

 

Russell's business district extends all the way to the Boyd County line and includes Kroger, Lowe's, Value City, Hobby Lobby and the attending strip malls associated with these businesses. To say the Russell-Flatwoods area would not like to have some of these larger chain restaurants come into their tax base may not be entirely accurate.

Russell's business district extends all the way to the Boyd County line and includes Kroger, Lowe's, Value City, Hobby Lobby and the attending strip malls associated with these businesses. To say the Russell-Flatwoods area would not like to have some of these larger chain restaurants come into their tax base may not be entirely accurate.

 

Dude, I did not say that Russell/Flatwoods would not like more of a tax base. The question posed was "is Greenup Co. wet", I said "No, and I doughty it ever will be", I would be more surprised then anyone if Greenup Co voted to be "wet" or "moist". I also said that Greenup Co. did not have any large business districts. I suppose "large" is a relative term, what may be large to me may not be large to you, and vise verse. I do not consider the area that you mentioned to be a large business district, but if you do that is fine with me.

I had an interesting though last night about this topic. Catlettsburg was once wet, correct ? From the stories I've been told, Catlettsburg used to have basically nothing but bars. This would have been before there were laws concerning public intoxication so I would assume that there were many drunks in the streets of Catlettsburg all the time. Is this what is turning people off to this idea ? Is this where the no vote stems from ? Maybe our older generation remembers how Catlettsburg once was and doesnt want it to become that again ? Maybe someone who was alive or knows more about that time period of Catlettsburg could shed some light on my theory.

Dude, I did not say that Russell/Flatwoods would not like more of a tax base. The question posed was "is Greenup Co. wet", I said "No, and I doughty it ever will be", I would be more surprised then anyone if Greenup Co voted to be "wet" or "moist". I also said that Greenup Co. did not have any large business districts. I suppose "large" is a relative term, what may be large to me may not be large to you, and vise verse. I do not consider the area that you mentioned to be a large business district, but if you do that is fine with me.

 

That's cool...I know many folks around here would love to see the county moist for the simple fact of being able to attract more sit down restaurants. While Russell's business district isn't huge, it is a pretty good size and there are some areas for further development if the situation was right. I also doubt it will ever happen as most feel Ashland or Portsmouth are close enough depending on which end of the county you live on.

I had an interesting though last night about this topic. Catlettsburg was once wet, correct ? From the stories I've been told, Catlettsburg used to have basically nothing but bars. This would have been before there were laws concerning public intoxication so I would assume that there were many drunks in the streets of Catlettsburg all the time. Is this what is turning people off to this idea ? Is this where the no vote stems from ? Maybe our older generation remembers how Catlettsburg once was and doesnt want it to become that again ? Maybe someone who was alive or knows more about that time period of Catlettsburg could shed some light on my theory.

 

Cattletsburg was voted dry during time of war (I believe it was WW II) when all the men were otherwise occupied fighting. The good women of Cattletsburg had a surprise for them when they came home...just imagine how that went...:eek:

That's cool...I know many folks around here would love to see the county moist for the simple fact of being able to attract more sit down restaurants. While Russell's business district isn't huge, it is a pretty good size and there are some areas for further development if the situation was right. I also doubt it will ever happen as most feel Ashland or Portsmouth are close enough depending on which end of the county you live on.

 

I doughy it would happen, but Russell could vote "wet/moist". Because the Russell business district is really part of the Ashland Enterprise Zone, and as you said does connect with the Ashland business district. Ashland is landlocked on that side and the business district could extend more into Russell/Flatwoods.

Cattletsburg was voted dry during time of war (I believe it was WW II) when all the men were otherwise occupied fighting. The good women of Cattletsburg had a surprise for them when they came home...just imagine how that went...:eek:

 

I have heard the stories of when Catlettsburg was the big party city of the area, but I did not know how it become dry. That right there is funny, I don't care who you are, that's funny.

Russell's business district extends all the way to the Boyd County line and includes Kroger, Lowe's, Value City, Hobby Lobby and the attending strip malls associated with these businesses. To say the Russell-Flatwoods area would not like to have some of these larger chain restaurants come into their tax base may not be entirely accurate.

 

I agree 100%. That shopping plaza would really benefit from having more eateries in the "moist" vein. Like Ram though, I highly doubt the county as a whole would ever vote it in. I wonder though- could Russell not do what Ashland did and become moist within the city limits or something to that effect? How did Ashland go about that process? Does anyone know if Russell has ever thought about making that kind of a move? I think you could garner plenty of support for it in Russell and Flatwoods, but I don't about the rest of the county.

The state allows for second class cities to hold wet/moist/dry votes separate from the county. At the time the state made that allowance around 1980, Ashland was the ONLY second class city in the state. At the time, local dry advocates felt it was a concession to Ashland Oil and a backdoor manuever to circumvent the exsisting law. Probably right, but I can't argue with the result.

I still have a goodly number of ties to the Ashland-Boyd County area so I have had an interest in the "moist" (catchy phrase) election and have followed it fairly closely.

 

The result of this vote is that all precincts in Boyd County, including Ashland, will become wet precincts. Therefore, these "restaurants with 100 chairs" can be located anywhere zoned for business. That could possibly be limited but history indicates that such votes result in much more liberal results than expected. Therefore, don't look for any real restrictions.

 

In reality, I suppose any of us could find a building, put up twenty-five card tables with four chairs around each table and apply for a license. We should be successful since the law sets no limit on the number of "establishments".

 

To carry an extreme a little further, when we open, we will, of course serve liquor by the drink. But, since we need 70% food sales, we will need to offer food. How about, peanut butter and crackers and cheese and crackers? We would advertise in our menus that, the price of each drink shall be allotted 25% to the drink and 75% to the "food". That allows us to far exceed the 70%.

 

Now, many will find this post ridiculous. However, under the law, as proposed and as worded, it would be a legal establishment. Any takers?

For the "Drys":

1. Due to the one-sided vote, it would be a waste of time to appeal the court decision.

 

2. The petition was being circulated for months. Why did you wait until the eleventh hour to get involved?

 

3. Those "leading" your cause insured that you would lose. You aren't going to win with a group of hardnose, judgmental Southern Baptist preachers as your "front men". No offense meant but it is the truth.

 

 

For the "Moists".

1. You were slick in how you handled the process and you "won". Your use of "upscale restaurants" was outstanding. However, I would suggest that being somewhat "upscale" in comparison to Wendy's and Rally's is not particularly "upscale".

 

2. However, I have always been taught that retail stores bring restaurants rather than vice versa.

 

3. That area needs retail stores more than it needs more chain restaurants. If you doubt this, look at downtown Ashland. It is much easier to get a bottle of beer than it is to get a pair of shoes. To use the term "pitiful" to describe the "business district" of Ashland would be a compliment. The "moist" vote won't bring any new retail outlets even though there are an abundance of empty buildings ready to house them.

I still have a goodly number of ties to the Ashland-Boyd County area so I have had an interest in the "moist" (catchy phrase) election and have followed it fairly closely.

 

The result of this vote is that all precincts in Boyd County, including Ashland, will become wet precincts. Therefore, these "restaurants with 100 chairs" can be located anywhere zoned for business. That could possibly be limited but history indicates that such votes result in much more liberal results than expected. Therefore, don't look for any real restrictions.

 

In reality, I suppose any of us could find a building, put up twenty-five card tables with four chairs around each table and apply for a license. We should be successful since the law sets no limit on the number of "establishments".

 

To carry an extreme a little further, when we open, we will, of course serve liquor by the drink. But, since we need 70% food sales, we will need to offer food. How about, peanut butter and crackers and cheese and crackers? We would advertise in our menus that, the price of each drink shall be allotted 25% to the drink and 75% to the "food". That allows us to far exceed the 70%.

 

Now, many will find this post ridiculous. However, under the law, as proposed and as worded, it would be a legal establishment. Any takers?

 

Those had better be some darn good cheese and crackers if I am going to pay the price or buy the quantities needed in order to get the sales to amount to 70% of the business(dollar wise).

To carry an extreme a little further, when we open, we will, of course serve liquor by the drink. But, since we need 70% food sales, we will need to offer food. How about, peanut butter and crackers and cheese and crackers? We would advertise in our menus that, the price of each drink shall be allotted 25% to the drink and 75% to the "food". That allows us to far exceed the 70%.

 

Now, many will find this post ridiculous. However, under the law, as proposed and as worded, it would be a legal establishment. Any takers?

 

I would welcome your establishment with open arms as long it means there is a Red Lobster down the street I can eat at now.

Those had better be some darn good cheese and crackers if I am going to pay the price or buy the quantities needed in order to get the sales to amount to 70% of the business(dollar wise).

 

What does a bottle of beer cost? How about $3.00? Using that, $2.25 will be marked up as food and $.75 for the beer. We will still make plenty of money since we will concentrate on cheap saltines, cheap peanut butter, and cheap cheese. With draft beer and mixed drinks, we will do even better since the cost per drink will be far under what we are charging.

 

The truth is that we are providing a good place for drinkers to drink and socalize. Hamburgers and pork chops merely get in the way. We are, in reality, providing a watering hole. We really don't care if you partake of the food anyway- even though it is specifically included in the price of your drink.

 

It will work. Is anyone ready? It could be a big moneymaker for an athletic booster club.