Alcohol Sales Ready To Start

Keon Boles with Premium Brands of Northwest Arkansas stocks the shelves Wednesday at Kum & Go store No. 408 on East Central Avenue in Bentonville.
Keon Boles with Premium Brands of Northwest Arkansas stocks the shelves Wednesday at Kum & Go store No. 408 on East Central Avenue in Bentonville.

— Beer and wine lined the shelves of stores in Benton County for the first time in 70 years Wednesday after the state’s Alcoholic Beverage Control Division approved 53 permits for retail sales at its monthly meeting.

At A Glance

Getting Approval

Approved Wednesday by the Alcoholic Beverage Control Division

Beer and Wine Permits

Bentonville

• Fastrip: 307 S. Walton Blvd., 3209 N.E. 11th St.

• E-Z Mart: 230 N. Walton Blvd., 2401 S.E. 14th St., 715 S.W. A St., 1009 S.E. 14th St.

• Murphy Express: 1211 S.E. Walton Blvd.

• Sam’s Club: 3500 S.E. Club Blvd.

• Casey’s General Store: 900 S.W. 14th St., 100 S.E. J St., 2801 S.E. J St.

• Walmart Market: 3510 S.E. 14th St.

• Walmart: 406 S. Walton Blvd. Tiger Stop: 1301 N. Walton Blvd.

• Kum & Go: 2710 Moberly Lane, 2811 E. Central Ave., 3610 S.W. Regional Airport Road

• *Superstop: 1311A S. Walton Blvd.

• *Airport Plaza Convenience Store: 7403 S.W. Regional Airport Blvd.

Rogers

• Walmart Market: 5000 Pauline Whitaker Parkway, 1819 S. Eighth St.

• E-Z Mart: 723 N. 13th St., 104 E. New Hope Road, 1749 W. Walnut St., 525 N. Second St.

• Walmart: 2110 W. Walnut St., 4208 Pleasant Crossing

• Finnegan’s Country Markets: 17773 Arkansas 12

• Casey’s General Store: 3075 W. Pleasant Grove

• Tobacco Shack: 302 S. Eighth St.

• Kum & Go: 1701 W. New Hope Road, 2400 W. Hudson Road

• Supermercado La Villita: 300 S. Eighth St.

Bella Vista

• Casey’s General Store: 1791 Forest Hills Blvd.

• Mac’s Get & Go: 2833 Bella Vista Way

• All In One Stop: 2811 Bella Vista Way

• Grand Central Station of Arkansas: 1806 Forest Hill Blvd.

Centerton

• Centerpoint Convenience Store: 1674 W. Centerton Blvd.

Gentry

• E-Z Mart: 900 W. Main St.

• Walmart Express: 905 S. Gentry Blvd.

Cave Springs

• E-Z Mart: 387 S. Main St.

Siloam Springs

• E-Z Mart: 925 W. Tulsa St.

• Walmart: 2901 U.S. 412

Decatur

• E-Z Mart: 588 Arkansas 59

Lowell

• E-Z Mart: 105 N. Bloomington St.

• *Hickory Creek Marina Fish & Ski Center: 12737 Hickory Creek Road

• Kum & Go: 104 S. Bloomington St., 978 Pleasant Grove Road, 816 W. Monroe Ave.

Pea Ridge

• E-Z Mart: 137 S. Curtis Ave.

Springdale (Benton County)

• E-Z Mart: 1635 Arkansas 264

Avoca

• Avoca One Stop: 124 Arkansas 62

Gravette

• Walmart Express: 800 First Ave.

*Approved with conditions

Source: Alcoholic Beverage Control Division

Kum & Go was one of the approved businesses that sent representatives to Little Rock to pick up its permits Wednesday. Businesses could accept delivery of beer and wine Wednesday, and sales can begin at 7 a.m. today, said Michael Langley, director of administration for the Alcoholic Beverage Control Division.

Mark Myer, regional manger for Kum & Go, braved winter weather and slick roads in central Arkansas to get permits for eight of his convenience stores. Employees of the Kum & Go on East Central Avenue spent Wednesday afternoon stocking beer in new coolers.

Applications were approved for Walmart, Kum & Go, E-Z Mart, Casey’s General Store and several other Benton County stores. None of the applications drew opposition from government or law enforcement officials, though residents did send in protests on two applications.

A resident sent a letter protesting the application for E-Z Mart at 387 S. Main St. in Cave Springs, and a group from Beacon Missionary Baptist Church sent a letter with 26 signatures in opposition to alcohol sales at the Walmart Express in Gravette. Both applications were approved.

Three applications were approved with conditions. Superstop at 1311 A S. Walton Blvd. and Airport Plaza Convenience Store at 7403 S.W. Regional Airport Blvd. in Bentonville must both remove all gaming machines and be inspected by enforcement agents from the state alcohol bureau.

Hickory Creek Marine Fish & Ski Center at 12737 Hickory Creek Road in Lowell must stock $7,500 in non-alcohol inventory and be inspected.

The permit for A&B Distributors of Arkansas, a wholesaler for Anheuser Busch, was approved earlier in the month to allow the business to be ready to deliver Wednesday, Langley said.

The board issued permits to three restaurants during Tuesday’s meeting. Beer and wine permits were approved for Chili’s at 420 N. 46th St. in Rogers, On the Border at 577 N. 46th St. in Rogers and Eleven at 600 Museum Way in Bentonville. The permits allow the restaurants to purchase alcohol from wholesale distributors instead of retail dealers.

Langley said his staff has worked hard to keep up with the permit applications in the aftermath of residents voting Benton, Madison and Sharp counties wet Nov. 6.

“It’s been overwhelming,” Langley said Wednesday. “My staff has done six months’ worth of work in a month. They’ve worked hard, especially today.”

Bentonville’s Planning Commission recommended a proposal Tuesday that alcohol can be sold from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. The ordinance will go before the City Council next Tuesday. In the interim, state regulations of 7 a.m. to 1 a.m. Monday through Friday and 7 a.m. to midnight Saturday will apply.

“Timing of the ordinance is not in advance of the ABC considering these permits,” said Troy Galloway, director of community development for the city. “Until the City Council acts on it, it does not apply.”

The ordinance also states businesses sellingl alcohol within 500 feet of a city park or trail must obtain a conditional use permit from the city. Galloway said one or two of the newly permitted outlets may fall under that category. He said he’s not sure if those businesses will be required to get a conditional use permit after the fact.

Rogers officials approved an ordinance setting out zoning specifications but didn’t further limit times or locations allowed by state law.

In the wake of the first round of permit approvals, applications for off-premises retail sales continue to roll in to the Alcoholic Beverage Control Division. Four convenience stores in Benton County applied for permits in the week ending Jan. 11, according to the division.

Those stores are White Hawk Center at 1710 W. Hudson Road in Rogers, Casey’s General Store at 2401 W. Olive St. in Rogers, Maysville Handi-Stop at 11827 Arkansas 43 in Maysville and Walgreens at 1722 W. Walnut Drive in Rogers. Logan’s Roadhouse at 530 N. 47th St. in Rogers applied for a restaurant beer and wine permit.

Permit applications received before Tuesday will be decided at the February board meeting. Applicants must wait 30 days after submitting their applications for a decision.

Sixty-four businesses have applied for off-premises beer and wine permits since Benton County residents voted the county wet Nov. 6. Ten restaurants have applied for on-premises beer and wine permits.

The permitting process for liquor stores is set to begin in the spring with a lottery to determine the order for hearings. State law will allow only 55 liquor stores in the county. Liquor store permits will be issued this summer, according to Langley.

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