ELLISVILLE — Despite voters’ approval of the sale of beer in the small Jones County town of Ellisville, some business owners are vowing not to sell the beverage.

“I have people that eat at my restaurant who would perhaps love a beer with their food, but I have no intentions of selling it here,” said Joe Pates, owner of Fisherman’s Choice at 58 Hal Crocker Road. “I’ve done well without selling it and I don’t see no reason to change things now.”

Carol Breedlove, owner of Da B’z Diner at 207 E. Laurel St., added, “My restaurant is located by the school and I don’t sell beer.”

Da B’z Dinner serves home-cooked Cajun food, including breakfast, lunch and dinner. It’s open from 5:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday through Saturday.

“I don’t know what others will do, but beer won’t be sold in my restaurant even when they start selling it in Ellisville. I’m concerned about the kids.”

Ellisville is home to Jones County Junior College, which is boasting its largest enrollment in history with about 5,453 students enrolled this fall. College officials are not commenting on the pending beer sales at this point, but Pates and Breedlove refused to be silent on an issue Pates said affects “all Ellisville residents.”

Pates is an Ellisville resident, but Breedlove isn’t. Still, she said, “I was totally against selling beer from the get-go. It’s just something I’m not in favor of. I didn’t have any problems before without selling it and I don’t think I’ll have any problems now. Not only will I not sell it, but it will not be brought in here by customers either.”

While other business owners voiced concerns and opinions similar to those shared by Pates and Breedlove, they refused to go on record. And others who favored the sale likewise refused to go on record.

“It’s a touchy subject,” said Pates. “I really don’t know if the money made on beer sales is really worth all the trouble it may bring.”

Butch Bailey, president of Raise Your Pints (RYP), a grassroots, non-profit organization whose mission it is to bring the highest quality beers in the world to Mississippi, said, “We are pleased that the residents of Ellisville have decided to allow more freedom and consumer choice and I’m sure the city will see the financial rewards from this step forward.”

Bailey said the Jackson, Miss.-based organization, which is made up of regular people from all over Mississippi who are passionate about gourmet beer, RYP takes no position on the local choice option.

“Mississippi law allows for each county and municipality to decide for themselves whether they allow alcohol to be sold or not and that’s just not our fight,” he said. “Many Mississippians don’t realize that some beers are crafted and treated the way fine wine is and many people appreciate them in the same manor.

“Mississippi is the only state in the United States that limits the allowable alcohol by weight in beer to five percent,” continued Bailey. “This restricts over one-third of all the beer styles in the world including rare ales from Belgian crafted by Christian monks as well as many small business craft brewers right here in the U.S.”

Bailey added that over 80 percent of the top rated beers in the world are banned from Mississippi consumers. RYP’s mission is to raise the allowable alcohol limit in beer to allow these gourmet products.

With Tuesday’s vote of 367 in favor of beer sales and 313 voting against, Ellisville businesses will soon be allowed to beer or any beverage containing no more than five percent alcohol.

Ellisville resident Adam Vega, who often eats lunch at Fisherman’s Choice with co-workers at Ferry Transportation, Inc. in Laurel, can’t wait. “That will mean I won’t have to go to Laurel any more to get it,” he said. “My tax dollars can stay here in Ellisville where they belong.”

He enjoys the food and the atmosphere of the small business that offers an assortment of meats, vegetables, desserts and beverages. He also enjoys a nice cold beer every now and then, but not when he’s working.

Fisherman’s Choice serves a family-style lunch buffet from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Monday through Friday and a seafood buffet from 5 to 8 p.m. on Friday. It’s a favorite lunch stop for many people working and living in the area.

While Pates is hesitant to condemn anyone who voted for Tuesday’s referendum that allows the sale of beer and light wine in the city limits, he “believes it was a big mistake.”

“Like people have stated before, we have the college kids here in Ellisville,” said Pates. “Beer will be open to kids and I do believe sales will go up at places that sell beer. If you make things easy, a lot of people will cater to it.

“It’s like this,” explained Pates. “If you discourage a thief and don’t make it easy for him to steal, he’s not going to hit your place. He’ll go somewhere else. He’ll find an easy target.”

For Ellisville residents who want beer, Pates said, “All they have to do is take a five-minute drive to Laurel. A lot of Christians in the community are not going to like it too well when beer sales begin.”

Ellisville Mayor Tim Waldrup stated that everyone would like to live in the world they envision. “It would be a perfect world, a perfect environment, a perfect place to live,” he said. “The problem is, there is one world out there. It’s a real one. Sometimes we may face things we don’t like or don’t approve of, but it’s a part of the real world in which we live.”