Rob Roberson, left, and Orlando Trainer	   OKTIBBEHA COUNTY – The board of supervisors are eyeing a new ordinance that would create a cut-off time for alcohol sales in Oktibbeha County’s resort areas and “prevent another situation like Cowbells” Sport Grill, Board Attorney Rob Roberson told The Dispatch.
The proposed ordinance would limit alcohol sales to between 7 a.m. and 10 p.m. in resort areas, the designation needed to sell alcohol in the otherwise dry county.
Bars open later put strain on the sheriff’s office and increase of DUIs and fights, Roberson said.
“Cowbells was a headache,” Roberson told The Dispatch. “And we learned from Cowbells we didn’t want to create places that stayed open until 3 o’clock. …We just don’t want there to be another cowbell situation going on in the county that creates problems for the sheriff department and all the citizens of our community.”
Cowbells Sport Grill closed down in 2020, but the property, near Clayton Village at the intersection of Highway 82 and Highway 182, remains a resort area since the designation is given to land, not business. The Double Headed Eagle Bar and Grill opened in its place in October 2022, but after the county suggested an ordinance similar to this one, it closed in January 2023. That ordinance never came to pass, and nothing has opened in its place.
Since Double Headed Eagle Bar and Grill closed, neither District 2 Supervisor Orlando Trainer nor Roberson is aware of any business in the county currently serving alcohol past 10 p.m.
The board is revisiting the ordinance now both to dissuade any late-night businesses from opening and since the county finally has a new restaurant, The Ranch on Poor House Road, Roberson told The Dispatch. The Ranch opened earlier this summer and does not stay open past 11 p.m.
“We have full support of the board making decisions (and) bringing these things forward and full support of the sheriffs and everything. They’re … keeping us safe out here,” Chef Jeff Thornsberry, The Ranch co-owner, told The Dispatch. “We’re aware there could be potential impact. …(A) minimal impact if any at all. Nothing we would ever consider making a fuss over or anything, we’d rather be supportive of the community.”
Trainer said the recent influx in requests for new resort areas is also a factor as this regulation will make it easier for the board to approve new resort areas.
“You want to regulate them,” Trainer told The Dispatch. “… We just want to try to be supportive (to business) in a way that won’t be a disservice to any of our population here. … The county we don’t have the personnel to be able to handle all of that, like some other places do.”
Roberson estimated there are currently five areas with resort status, including Starkville Country Club and 4300 Properties, The Ranch, Blueberry Peace Farm, Dodson Farm and the site of the former Double Headed Eagle Bar and Grill. The ordinance will not affect Mississippi State University or Maben, which both have resort status but don’t fall under the jurisdiction of this ordinance because they are incorporated.
If passed, the ordinance would be enforced by the Oktibbeha County Sheriff’s Office, and businesses found in violation could be fined between $500 and $1,000 for first offenses, while repeat offenders would be fined a minimum of $1,000.
The board will hold a public hearing for the ordinance at 9 a.m. Monday in the chancery courthouse, after which it can vote on the measure.
Both Trainer and Roberson encourage the community to submit feedback to the board during the public hearing.