BOC Deadlocked on Amending Alcohol Ordinance

Following a 30-minute discussion of Forsyth County's alcohol ordinance, county commissioners failed to reach a clear consensus.

Chairman Brian Tam, a restaurateur, argued that the current ordinance is too stringent and that commissioners should be permitted to hear mitigating circumstances before automatically revoking the license of a licensee who has sold alcohol to an underage customer.

District 4 Commissioner Patrick Bell argued that would send a message that Forsyth County is not going to be tough on enforcement of its ordinance. "Is that the message we want to send," Bell asked.

Tam argued that the county should be tough on someone who repeatedly violates the ordinance, but that there can be mitigating circumstances that should be considered. Under the current ordinance, he said, that isn't possible.

Bell made a motion that a distinction be made between administrative violations, such as an expired license, and underage sales which was seconded. Before a vote was taken on that motion, Tam made a motion to amend that would include a clause for mitigating circumstances in either scenario.

That vote ended in a 2-2 tie with Bell and Commissioner Jim Boff opposed and Commissioner Todd Levent absent. As a result, Bell's original motion was left to stand until the full board could vote at the next work session.

Bell, who is the father of a teenage son, then made a motion that the county institute mandatory carding but the motion died for a lack of a second.

In other business, the board agreed to appoint Flo Giltman and Joseph LaBranche to the Region One Behavioral Health & Developmental Disabilities Planning Board and Lorne Twiner to the Board of Ethics as the Civil Service appointee.

The board also agreed to approve the FLIPSFilm Master services agreement and the Aging Services contract with Legacy Link, Inc. Those items will be placed on the Consent Agenda at a future Board of Commissioners meeting.