Wartrace liquor awaits signature of governor

Gov. Phil Bredesen's signature is the last thing standing between liquor by the drink and the Walking Horse Hotel.

Well, that, and a half a dozen other things, such as permits, time and money.

The special exception to serve liquor by the drink requested by the Town of Wartrace has passed both House and Senate votes, said the owner, Joe Peters, who said the governor's signature is the only step left on that end of the deal.

On his end however, there's more work to be done.

"We're not in any big rush," he said. "This is a unique situation and we're still trying to figure out what permits to get where."

Usually, liquor by the drink has to be decided by referendum, allowing the citizens of a town to vote on the issue, but there have to be at least 1,000 voters. Because Wartrace's registered voters number about a third of that, a referendum was not possible. The only way to get liquor by the drink at the hotel would be with a special exception from the state. The state, however, would not consider an exception without a request from the town's governing body.

Peters first approached the board about the special exception request last winter, where it died for the lack of a motion.

He brought the matter back to the board in September and the board agreed to place a survey at City Hall allowing people to sign their names if they wanted the town to proceed with the petition. Originally, only registered voters who were residents of the town were permitted to sign, but that was later amended to include property owners.

In November, the board voted 3-2 in favor as asking the state to grant the exception.

The bill was submitted to the state Senate by Bill Ketron, where it passed 22-5, and to the House by Pat Marsh, where it passed 72-21, with three abstaining. The bill specifies that the exception "will only apply to the Walking Horse Hotel in Bedford County."