Liquor store licensing moratorium exceptions granted

The Macon-Bibb County Commission voted Tuesday to allow exceptions to its moratorium on alcohol licenses for liquor stores after confusion over the deadline to renew. In January of 2021, commissioners enacted a moratorium on new licenses for the retail sale of distilled spirits until the number of licenses falls below one for every 5,600 in Macon-Bibb County. Mayor Lester Miller said the exceptions would be granted in cases where businesses had renewed their state licenses and had filed to renew their local license within 60 days of the original deadline before the county set the fixed deadline of Dec. 31. Miller expects the exemptions to be completed by the end of the year. The County Commission also recognized Pastor Eddie L. Smith Sr. for his 50 years of ministry in Macon-Bibb County with a proclamation and signs to be posted outside his Macedonia Baptist Church. Commissioners also congratulated the Macon Youth Baseball Legends 14u All-Star Team who won the 2022 World Series Championship in New Orleans in a six-team tournament July 11-17. The Commission meeting was preceded by public hearings over the closure of part of Cason Street and the renaming of a portion of Anthony Road for the late Bibb County School System music teacher Robert Scott. Here are highlights in tweets from Civic Journalism Senior Fellow Liz Fabian.