Cesar Nuño’s family has owned Mariscos Puerto Vallarta for about five years, but the business didn’t get a liquor license until this year.
“We close early, at 8 p.m., Monday through Thursday, and at 9 p.m. Friday through Sunday, so the cost wasn’t really worth it to us,” said Nuño.
But the annual pouring liquor license fee decreased to $2,000 from $4,000 this year, which prompted the family to try it out.
The lower cost is only part of the reason Dalton officials have seen an increase in the number of alcohol license applications this year, said Luis Villavizar, Dalton’s deputy city clerk. The other, he said, is that new businesses that want the license are opening up.
The number of alcoholic beverage accounts increased from 103 in 2008 to 106 so far in 2010, according to the clerk’s office.
Despite the economic downturn and a new law that went into effect this year requiring individuals to be in the country legally to apply for public benefits – including a business license – the number of business permits and licenses has remained relatively steady.
The number of new businesses decreased from 241 in 2008 to 201 in 2009, but increased to 215 so far in 2010, data shows.
“The fact that there wasn’t a larger decrease, I guess my thoughts would be that we’ve always [had] a dynamic and somewhat entrepreneurial business climate and, even during these times, there’s always some willing to take a risk of opening a new building and invest in our community,” said Brian Anderson, president and chief executive officer of the Dalton-Whitfield Chamber of Commerce.
In regards to the state law, Anderson said many in Dalton’s Hispanic community – the group with the largest share of illegal immigrants – have been in the city for generations.
“Given the long nature of the immigrant population that has come here who have children who’ve had children, I think there’s much more stability,” he said.
Another reason could be that those who are in the country illegally usually have business partners who have legal status, said Dalton State management professor Marilyn Helms.
Still, even though there seems to be some progress, the recession is not over, Helms warned.
“There’s this general insecurity in the market that’s hindering the growth of new ventures,” she said. “The big problem is when small businesses are down, it doesn’t jump-start the economy.”
Nuño said he has seen some new businesses open, but a lot more have closed.
“It seems that things are just starting to get better,” said the Mexico native, whose extended family moved to the Dalton area 30 years ago.
“There have been closures of Hispanic and Caucasian businesses,” said Anderson. “It’s a difficult climate.
“It has affected every type of business and owner, and it will go for another 18 months as far as this being a very unsure time, but the town hasn’t closed. People are still opening businesses from scratch,” he added.
Contact Perla Trevizo at ptrevizo@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6578. Follow her on Twitter at twitter.com/Perla_Trevizo.