The town of Signal Mountain is considering changing its on-premise beer regulations to reflect the evolution of the beer industry and make it easier for beer to be sold at fundraising events.
Mayor Dan Landrum described the town's beer ordinance as "so 1980s" in that it limits the alcohol by volume of beer sold for on-premise consumption to 5%.
Since the ordinance was written, the craft beer industry has taken off, and hardly any craft beers have 5% ABV or less, he said.
People often say a pub would be a good addition to the town, but requirements included in the current beer ordinance - such as having seating for 50 and serving both lunch and dinner - make opening such a business difficult, added Landrum.
"If that is restricting potential businesses from coming into Signal Mountain, then we ought to take a look at that," he said.
Town Manager Boyd Veal said the beer industry has evolved since the ordinance was written - when almost all beer had less than 5% ABV - and that the town may want to consider changing, perhaps with citizen input, what he sees as being an "anti-bar/honky-tonk ordinance."
"Things have evolved so that there are establishments that focus on beer or other alcoholic beverages that don't fit the mold of the classic bar and the problems that they bring with them," he said. "There's no reason not to have that discussion and make a determination."
Landrum suggested raising the alcohol content limit to 9%. Many popular craft beers have 6-8% ABV, with some approaching 12-13%, according to alcohol.org.
He pointed out that even if a business is licensed by the state to sell wine, it is still limited to selling beer with an alcohol content of 5% or less under the town's current ordinance.
"That's crazy," said Landrum, who suggested deciding on new regulations at the Aug. 26 council meeting so an ordinance could be drawn up and first voted on at the Sept. 9 meeting.
Email Emily Crisman at ecrisman@timesfreepress.com.