By By JOHN EBY / Niles Daily Star
CASSOPOLIS - The Board of Commissioners voted 9-5 Thursday for Sunday liquor sales, allowed in Michigan since 1981.
Cass County, however, is one of just five in the state where spirits still cannot be sold along with beer and wine.
The majority sided with small businesses losing sales to surrounding counties, as near to Dowagiac as Sister Lakes in Van Buren or Niles in Berrien.
Victor and Debbie Cuthbert, owners of The Manor Mini-Mart, attended with a group of merchants to show their support for the resolution offered by Vice Chairman Ron Francis, R-Cassopolis.
William E. Stoler of K B Village Express, 1101 E. State St., Cassopolis, submitted a written request advocating approval of Sunday liquor sales.
Stoler also conversed with Shafer's Meat Market and Rite Aid Pharmacy in Cassopolis along with The Manor in concluding, "These businesses are losing sales in Cass County to surrounding counties that are benefiting by having Sunday liquor sales. I believe that we should maintain as much commerce in our county as possible to support the citizens of Cass County and the business in Cass County."
The minority, led by Dowagiac Commissioner John Cureton, analyzed the request more as a moral issue and said six days a week is enough.
Joining Cureton in opposing Sunday sales were Commissioners Cathy Goodenough, R-Marcellus; Jack Teter, R-Edwardsburg; Minnie Warren, D-Pokagon Township; and Johnie Rodebush, D-Niles.
The nine who voted favorably on the change were Chairman Robert Wagel, R-Wayne Township; Gordon Bickel, R-Constantine; David Taylor, D-Edwardsburg; Carl Higley Sr., R-Edwardsburg; Ron Francis, R-Cassopolis; Dixie Ann File, R-Cassopolis; Dale Lowe, R-Niles; Robert Ziliak, R-Niles; and Terri Kitchen, R-Silver Creek Township.
The 15th commissioner, Alan Northrop, R-Marcellus, was absent.
Rodebush, with all due respect to the merchants, related an emotional story about a Road Commission father of five from Howard Township many years ago. He was drunk and stepped on the children's cat and angrily put a bullet through the pet's head as a 5-year-old cradled it in his arms.
But he got 25 years in prison for killing his wife.
File disagreed, saying if someone was going to consume alcohol, they would whether they could buy it on Sunday or not.
Francis pointed out the Resolutions Committee passed it out to the full board on a 4-0 vote. "Where's the merit?" in penalizing responsible merchants for others' alcohol abuse, Francis asked.
Taylor said a motion to designate one day of the week not to sell alcohol was more of a religious question.
Bickel said, those inclined to make purchases would do so somewhere, so don't impede commerce.
Higley said whenever someone leaves Cass County to buy alcohol, more is lost than those sales because those citizens make other purchases while they're out.
Commissioners in passing the request were supporting small business, not promoting alcohol, Higley argued.