Buying alcohol before game time or enjoying an early morning drink on Sunday may be getting a whole lot easier in Orlando.
According to the Orlando Sentinel, Orlando officials are considering easing restrictions on alcohol sales on Sunday. Current restrictions prohibit bars, restaurants, groceries, convenience stores and liquor stores around Central Florida from selling alcohol before noon on Sunday.
If approved, that time would change to 9 a.m.
“It’s put our businesses at a competitive disadvantage with some of the surrounding communities not to have sales until after noon,” Mayor Buddy Dyer told the Orlando Sentinel.
The restrictions date back as far as the 17th century and were originally meant to to give religious worship a leg up on the bottle, the Orlando Sentinel says. Many other places around the country have already eased, or removed, the Sunday prohibition laws and Orlando now looks to get in line with those places.
Different counties across the state have different restrictions: In Seminole County, for instance, Sunday is like every other day, and you can buy alcohol as early as 7 a.m. In Orange County, you can buy beer at a grocery store at 9 a.m., or have a drink in a bar at 11 a.m., seven days a week.
“If you’re doing brunch at 10 or 11 and you can’t sell a Bloody Mary until noon, people will go somewhere they can get a Bloody Mary,” Dyer told the Sentinel.
But not everyone is for the changes. Rev. Randolph Bracy, former pastor of New Covenant Baptist Church of Orlando, told the Orlando Sentinel the plan sends a bad message about a city that’s supposed to be the world’s top family destination.
“In our Judeo-Christian heritage, Sunday is supposed to be a day of worship,” Bracy told the Orlando Sentinel. “After noon, you can do whatever you want, but Sunday morning is for worship. Do they want Orlando to be the booze capital of the world?”
The City Council is expected to consider the changes on Monday. If approved with a final vote next month, it would take effect Jan. 1.
