The Galveston County Daily News

FRIENDSWOOD — Voters overwhelmingly approved the sale of alcohol in downtown Friendswood last week, but it could take months for the city to reap the economic benefits.

Before restaurants, grocery stores and convenience stores can sell alcohol in the historically dry downtown, business owners and restaurateurs must apply for state licenses and permits. That process could take as long as three months, Texas Alcohol and Beverage Commission spokeswoman Carolyn Beck said.

The state won’t consider applications for permits and licenses until the city canvasses the election results Nov. 16, Beck said.

The city and county then must approve all applications. Restaurateurs must post a 60-day notice before they can serve beer, wine and liquor.

End Of Dry Spell

Businesses said they are ready to break a 46-year-old dry spell in downtown Friendswood.

Kroger, 151 N. Friendswood Drive, is making room for refrigerators to store beer and wine, and the company will apply for a state license, spokeswoman Rebecca King said.

“We’d love to have it available in stores for the holidays,” she said. “Unfortunately, that’s really going to be a stretch for us. We hope to have it by the end of January or early February at the latest.”

Proponents of lifting the ban on alcohol sales said it would boost business in the historically dry downtown district along the FM 518 corridor between FM 528 and FM 2351. They argued permitting alcohol sales would attract more upscale restaurants to the downtown district, which would, in turn, attract other businesses.

Adjusting for income, the Waco-based Perryman Group found in 2008 that retail sales in wet regions are higher than those in dry communities. The study was commissioned by the Texas Hospitality Association.

The study found that a city the size of Friends-wood with a per-capita income 10 percent below the state average would net $19 million in alcohol sales per year. Cities that go from dry to wet are likely to see economic advantages, the study found.

Wet In Waxahachie

After voters in Waxahachie, a town of 30,000 south of Dallas, lifted the ban on alcohol in May 2008, two chain restaurants — Buffalo Wild Wings and Logan’s Roadhouse — moved into the city, Debra Wakeland, president and CEO of the Chamber of Commerce, said.

When Wakeland and another chamber member attended the International Council of Shopping Centers conference, restaurateurs who never looked twice at Waxahachie expressed interest in opening franchises in the city, she said.

“There’s been an economic boost, there’s no doubt in my mind,” she said.

Wakeland didn’t have exact figures on sales tax increases, but she said Walmart and H-E-B reported significant revenue boosts after the alcohol ban was lifted.

“That was money that was going right out of the door to the cities 15 miles in all directions of our city which were wet,” she said. “It was so silly.”

Private Clubs

It remains to be seen what permitted alcohol sales will do to Friends-wood’s economy.

Some downtown restaurants were selling alcohol through a private club registration with the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission. The commission requires these restaurants to shell out $1,500 to $3,500 to obtain a private club permit and then pay an annual fee of $1,500 to $2,000 to keep the permit, according to the commission’s rules.

Now, restaurants will be able to sell alcohol without private club permits and stores legally can sell beer and wine. Liquor stores are not permitted.

The city, founded by Quakers, banned alcohol sales in April 1963, the year Friendswood was incorporated.