The issue of alcohol sales in Bullard will be decided in the November election.

As required by law, during the regular monthly meeting Tuesday, March 16, the Bullard City Council approved a petition for a local option election on Tuesday, Nov. 2, to legalize the sale of alcohol.

The two measures that will be decided include the legal sale of beer and wine for off-premise consumption only, and the legal sale of mixed beverages in restaurants by food and beverage certificate holders only.

Council members were required by law to set an election for the alcohol measures, provided the required number of signatures on a petition for each measure was presented and verified. Bullard City Secretary, Doris Crockett said she verified 279 signatures for the first measure, the legal sale of beer and wine for off-premise consumption only, and 284 signatures for the second measure, the legal sale of mixed beverages in restaurants by food and beverage certificate holders only.

Both measures exceeded the required number of signatures, which is 166, to present a measure for election.

Billy Horton of Hard Count Inc., a consulting firm in Austin, represented a group called Citizens for the Future of Bullard. The group filed the petitions for the sale of alcohol Jan. 28.

“I think the prospect is good for a successful effort,” Horton said.

Crockett had 30 days to verify the signatures, after the petitions were filed. The measures were not presented in time for the council to approve them for the May elections.

Bullard Mayor Teresa Adams-Wilks does not support the measures.

“I strongly oppose the sale of alcohol in the City of Bullard. The City of Bullard took no part in any petition nor did we actively solicit the sale of alcohol in the City of Bullard.

“Our citizens have been misinformed and misled to believe that this will lower their property taxes and that is simply not true. This will in no way decrease property taxes and could, in fact, increase them.

“The sale of alcohol in our community could increase domestic violence and crime, and force the City of Bullard to have to hire additional police force, which inevitable, will come back to the citizens in the form of a tax rate increase,” Adams-Wilks said. “This in no way can be good for our community.”

Bullard is one of several area communities considering alcohol sales, including Jacksonville, Whitehouse and Troup. Proponents cite an increase in the tax base as a positive aspect for the sale of alcohol.

“The only people benefiting from such an ordinance being passed in the City of Bullard are the people selling the alcohol. The City of Bullard would receive 1 cent on the dollar from sales tax generated from the sale of alcohol,” Adams-Wilks said. “It is not worth jeopardizing the serenity of this community, when there are other ways to generate revenue for our city that will have a far more positive impact than the sale of alcohol.”

Recent elections for the sale of alcohol has divided communities on the issue. Wynona was the first Smith County city to approve the sale of alcohol, but the initial election, which ended in an apparent tie, was nullified and the measure passed in a second election.

“Now that this has become an issue for our City, the citizens of Bullard can stop this from happening by voting no to the sale of alcoholic beverages in the city limits of Bullard, Texas,” Adams-Wilks said.

Early voting for the November election will be Oct. 18 through Oct. 29.

Note: To express an opinion about the measures for the sale of alcohol, submit a letter to the editor. Letters should be brief and, as per policy, must include name, phone number and address (phone number and address will not be published). Letters may be sent by e-mail to editor@bullardnews.com or sent to 114 N. Houston St., Suite 1, Bullard, TX 75757.