McCreary Co. gets ready for alcohol vote

<Discussion is heating up in one southeastern Kentucky county as to whether it should allow alcohol sales within its borders.McCreary County residents will vote on the issue August 28th. The last time voters went to the polls on such a measure was almost 30 years ago.Signs reading "yes" and "no" on the measure line Highway 27 from the Tennessee line to Pulaski County. Papa's Pizza owner Tina Tucker put a "yes" sign in the front window of her business because she believes alcohol sales would help the county's economy.According to the US Census Bureau, two years ago, a third of McCreary County residents lived below the poverty line."We can at least try to keep some of our revenue here and possibly bring up more revenue from Tennessee," she said.Jeff Bryant, pastor of Redemption Way Church, said he supports the measure because he believes it would curtail bootlegging in the area."My biggest concern is the bootlegging aspect of it," he said. "We have a lot of minor kids, who in all honesty, that's their major source."But, not everyone agrees.Local group, Secure McCreary County, said it did not believe alcohol sales would fix any of McCreary's problems in the long run."Companies and businesses looking to come to our county for jobs, they're looking more for of an infrastructure, they're looking more for the workforce, they're looking for more for those issues," said Reverend William Kilby.Reverend Mark Sewell also said he feels legalizing alcohol sales in the county would not stop underage drinking."I don't think bringing in alcohol county-wide and making availability so much more [prevalent] that you would be cutting out any bootleggers' business," he said.If McCreary County were to pass such a measure, it would join other Kentucky cities like Corbin and Williamsburg as places that voted to expand the legal use of alcohol in their limits.<