NEW RESTAURANTS

SPORTS BARS

INCREASED TOURISM
With regular university and city-wide events and the growth that Starkville has experienced in the past few years, tourism is on the increase.  We have built some momentum in our city and done a lot to draw outsiders in.  Many of those people are in town on weekends and would like to have a number of dining options.  By extension, the current law stifles our plans for growth in city tourism. 

Most of us want MSU alums to visit Starkville often and to build or buy second homes/condos here.  It makes our city more exciting, more desirable, and greatly increases revenue for our local businesses and city coffers, with little drain on our infrastructure.  Making our city more desirable to tourists also makes our city more desirable to the Mississippi State alumni base.  This type of growth benefits all of us, but the current law stands in the way of that.  Let's promote tourism.  Let's lift the Sunday sales ban.

MORE SUNDAY DINING OPTIONS
Have you ever complained that there aren't enough places to eat in Starkville on a Sunday?  Ever wondered why?  Many of your favorite Starkville restaurants who are currently closed on Sundays would like to open.  It's true.  Ask the restaurant owners.  The current ban presents two major problems for restaurant owners who want to open on Sunday.  First, they can't make enough money.  Without supplementing their food numbers with alcohol sales, as they do on every other day of the week, they simply cannot have as much revenue on Sundays.  Why would a restaurant owner want to take time and effort to open on a day when, so often, their sales will be so much lower?  Their answer is a "closed" sign that stays up until Monday.

The second problem is that, without alcohol sales, their customer base is completely erratic.  Restaurants who have tried opening on Sundays often say that they cannot ever predict their crowd.  Some Sundays, their restaurant is packed.  Other times it is completely dead.  Owners and managers increase their staff in anticipation of a large crowd and nobody shows up; or, they schedule a skeleton crew, and the place is full.  Again, the current solution is to close until Monday.

Alcohol sales bring restaurant numbers to a more manageable and predictable middle ground.  If a restaurant owner can get some consistency with a Sunday crowd, and be sure that he will take in enough money to make it worth his while, you will see more restaurants open on Sundays.  If you don't believe that, take a look at West Point and Columbus.  Let's bring more Sunday dining options to Starkville.  Let's lift the Sunday sales ban.

HEALTHIER LOCAL ECONOMY
Sunday alcohol sales means that people spend their money here in Starkville, on local businesses, at local restaurants.  With more restaurants open, it means that our out-of-town guests will be more likely to stick around Starkville on a Sunday to have a meal or visit some of our businesses instead of trying to head out of town immediately. 

More restaurants in operation on Sunday means a boost in local employment.  With restaurants and other businesses open, managers need people to staff those businesses.  This gives our students and local residents more of an opportunity to work and make extra money if they so choose.

As discussed previously, people who want to buy alcohol will often drive to Columbus or West Point to buy.  We can keep that money here in Starkville, supporting local businessowners instead of those in other cities.  Let's keep our dollars in Starkville.  Let's lift the Sunday sales ban.

HIGHER CITY TAX REVENUE
As residents, we are resoundingly against increasing our local taxes; yet we all want better roads, a cleaner city, etc.  Something has to give.  Sunday sales can help to fill that gap.  By lifting the ban, more restaurants will open, and more money will be spent per meal, on average.  More people will stay in Starkville to eat and purchase alcohol instead of going out of town.  With those increases in sales comes an increase in tax revenue.  That revenue can be used to pave roads, or implement beautification plans for our downtown areas, create more bike lanes, and improve recreational facilities.  These are all benefits that our citizens can realize without paying a dime more in local taxes.  It is a win-win situation for the city and for our residents.  Let's strengthen our infrastructure.  Let's lift the Sunday sales ban.

STRONGER UNIVERSITY RECRUITMENT
We all want to see Mississippi State recruit the best students and faculty possible.  Both will partially choose their university on how much they like the surrounding city. 

Like it or not, in years past, Starkville has been rated as the worst SEC town.  It's a shame, because this is a great city.  Truthfully, though, prospective students take note of what they hear and many still get the wrong impression that we are a boring city.  Of course it is not true, but old ideas die hard.  Starkville certainly has made significant strides over the past few years, but this ban holds us back.  Many of our students and their families come from areas that sell alcohol on Sundays and are dismayed by this antiquated rule.

Prospective faculty members and administrators visit Starkville, too.  Often they are here on a Sunday and have to go out of town to have a drink or even to dine at a family-owned restaurant.  Is this what we want these people to do?  When trying to decide whether or not to relocate to Starkville, it doesn't speak in our favor if prospective employees have to leave the city for food or entertainment.  Yet again, the current law gets in the way and we are, basically, shooting ourselves in the foot.  It is a senseless regulation that is stifling the university's growth and, by extension, making Starkville a less desirable location.  Let's support Mississippi State.  Let's lift the Sunday sales ban.