BENTONVILLE -- Benton County's justices of the peace endorsed allowing Avoca residents to vote on having Sunday liquor sales in their town at a July 11 special election.
The Quorum Court's Committee of the Whole approved the special election Tuesday, which state law requires the county to do after residents submitted petitions with enough signatures calling for the election. The proposal goes to the full Quorum Court when it meets April 27.
County vacancy
Benton County’s justices of the peace on Tuesday declared a vacancy in the District 3 seat on the Quorum Court. Barney Hayes resigned from the position last month. It will be considered by the full Quorum Court on April 27 and then sent to Gov. Asa Hutchinson, who will appoint someone to fill the position.
Source: Staff Report
Bob Bland, justice of the peace, sponsored the resolution calling for the special election.
Dana Caler, elections coordinator for the Benton County Clerk's Office, said state law says petitions seeking a special election on Sunday liquor sales have to have signatures from at least 15 percent of the registered voters who cast ballots for governor in the most recent election. Caler said there were no Avoca issues or races on the 2014 ballot so the petitions needed at least 15 percent of the 255 registered voters in the city. Caler said the petitions presented to the city clerk and the county clerk needed 38 valid signatures and had 40.
Bland said Avoca's City Council unanimously approved the petitions, which were done by Stephanie Zortman and Stacey Latham, the owners of the Two Sisterz Liquor in Avoca. The two will bear the cost of the special election, set for the same day as an election on fire dues for the Beaver Lake Fire Department, Bland said.
Zortman and Latham said they are excited and pleased by the response to their petitions. They said the expansion of their business, which has been open for three years, will benefit the community.
"We have so many customer who go to Missouri now," Zortman said. "Why send that money to Missouri when we can keep it here?"
Latham said the petitions were done at the business and garnered a good response from the community.
"We even had a few people who registered to vote so they could sign it," she said. "Isn't that exciting?"
The approval prompted little discussion among the justices of the peace. Brent Meyers asked why the measure didn't need three readings, as others have. Bland said since a resolution is all that's required instead of an ordinance, only one reading is needed.
Mike McKenzie, justice of the peace, abstained from voting. McKenzie said he owns the Avoca One Stop, which also sells beer, and that conflict of interest prompted him to excuse himself.
Tom Allen, justice of the peace, said justices of the peace aren't taking a position on the question by approving the ordinance.
"This is simply allowing the city of Avoca to have an election," Allen said.
NW News on 04/12/2017