All of the municipalities in Orange County have now officially opted into earlier alcohol sales on Sunday mornings.

Hillsborough joined Carrboro and Chapel Hill in opting into the earlier alcohol sales on Sunday mornings as part of the so-called Brunch Bill signed into law earlier this month.

Hillsborough Mayor Tom Stevens said that, while there was some opposition around town to the earlier sales, the benefits outweighed the negatives. Those benefits, Stevens said, are what caused the Board of Commissioners to vote on the ordinance at a joint meeting with the planning board last week rather than waiting for the next scheduled regular business meeting next month.

“We knew this was important, particularly for our restaurateurs, to not have to wait until our upcoming August meeting,” Stevens said. “[We] have a lot of support for this from the board, particularly for the restaurants.”

Stevens added the economic impact of the two earlier hours of alcohol sales may have an enhanced impact as downtown restaurants have suffered lost business during ongoing construction on Churton Street in downtown Hillsborough.

“That is slowing down business there a little bit,” Stevens said. “Let’s do what we can to support our local businesses.”

Stevens said, with the brand that Hillsborough has developed, it’s important that the town keeps pace with other local municipalities.

“We do have a vibrant tourist industry,” Stevens said. “We have events happening on Sunday. We do have several restaurants – both downtown and in other places – that serve before noon on Sunday. And certainly the restaurants came out and very much said, ‘Yes, this will be very, very helpful to us.’”

And with a town of approximately 6,500, Stevens said the restaurant industry is important to the town economy.

“We see the restaurant industry growing in this town, and we want to be supportive of that.”

The earlier alcohol sales were implemented last Sunday morning.

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