City Council members can drink their fill of a far-from-dry topic at a committee meeting this afternoon.
A possible policy on alcohol on city property is on the agenda for the Land Planning and Development Committee when it meets at the Municipal Building at 4:30.
The issue arose at the council meeting Monday night because some local church leaders refuse to accept a decision to allow beer at the Henderson-Vance Chamber of Commerce’s two Alive After Five concerts scheduled for the city’s Operations & Service Center this year.
The council voted Feb. 14 to reaffirm that City Manager Eric Williams has the power to allow community organizations to use the facility on Beckford Drive and to decide whether alcohol may be served at such functions. Williams made clear before the vote that if the council left the decision up to him, he would allow wet Alive After Five events.
Only Mary Emma Evans voted no on that motion.
The Rev. Frank Sossamon of South Henderson Pentecostal Holiness Church rose at that meeting to oppose the use of alcohol on any city-owned property and vowed to continue the fight.
He has done so, organizing church petition drives to make city property dry.
“I have taken very seriously your objection(s) and concern(s) and the periodic receipt of the petitions in opposition from time to time and for that very reason have been diligent at passing those along to the Mayor and Council any time I received one, which I will continue to do as may be needed,” Williams wrote to Sossamon on Monday night. “I well understand the strong feelings on both sides of this issue and respect them all.”
Williams brought the matter back before the council Monday night after receiving an e-mail message from Sossamon over the weekend.
“I was just wondering what decision you have made regarding, ‘Alive After Five’?” Sossamon wrote. “The public needs to know if this is going to happen as requested or not.”
That question confused Williams because he thought he made it clear last month that he had made the decision.
The revival of the issue also confused council members.
“Didn’t we do this already?” Lonnie Davis asked.
The council considered reaffirming its reaffirmation of its policy of leaving such decisions up to Williams, but instead, at Elissa Yount’s suggestion, Mayor Clem Seifert referred the issue of an alcohol policy to the Land Planning and Development Committee.
Yount heads that committee, which includes Evans and Davis.
Aside from buildings and their grounds, a policy might address the serving of alcohol on other city property and on city streets that are closed for special events.
Whatever the committee recommends about alcohol on city property, the first Alive After Five will not be affected. It will be April 28 at 5:30 at the Operations & Service Center, with music by Right On and beer from Anheuser-Busch distributor Harris Inc. of Henderson, the primary sponsor of Alive After Five.
John Wester said he didn’t think the Alive After Five scheduled for Sept. 15 should be subject to any new policy, but Seifert said that will be another decision for the council.