Sunday sales about convenience

It’s a new era. No more slapping your forehead Sunday because you forgot to buy a bottle of wine or beer on Saturday for that Sunday dinner party or barbecue. Wichita’s first-ever Sunday sales of spirits last weekend drew lines of people at some liquor stores, suggesting that Wichitans will make Sunday sales profitable for liquor retailers who choose to participate. “This is very convenient,” said one customer. And that was the point of the change.
Posted by Randy Scholfield

57 Comments

  1. ksfarmgrrl
    Posted July 10, 2007 at 2:00 pm | Permalink

    Oh but this will destroy the family, put our state on the road to ruin, and cause homosexuality if you listen to and watch the whining and hand wringing.

  2. stumper
    Posted July 10, 2007 at 2:06 pm | Permalink

    You forgot: Godless heathens, funds disappearing from church coffers, drunk sunday drivers (as opposed to the usual looky-loos) and pregnant male prostitutes.

  3. WSClark
    Posted July 10, 2007 at 2:07 pm | Permalink

    Damn, Farmgrrl, I knew that there was a reason for homosexuality but I never realized that it was buying alcohol on Sunday.

    Now we know!

    (And for the RR that can’t get it, that was SARCASM.)

  4. Posted July 10, 2007 at 2:08 pm | Permalink

    Next City Council meeting should discuss setting up more DUI check points on Sundays. :)

  5. littlejohn
    Posted July 10, 2007 at 2:32 pm | Permalink

    Oh but this will destroy the family, put our state on the road to ruin, and cause homosexuality,Godless heathens, funds disappearing from church coffers, drunk sunday drivers and pregnant male prostitutes.

    Quite a list of effects. I am sure glad I don;t drink on Sunday.

    Posted by: stumper | July 10, 2007 at 02:06

  6. littlejohn
    Posted July 10, 2007 at 2:32 pm | Permalink

    Oh but this will destroy the family, put our state on the road to ruin, and cause homosexuality,Godless heathens, funds disappearing from church coffers, drunk sunday drivers and pregnant male prostitutes.

    Quite a list of effects. I am sure glad I don;t drink on Sunday.

  7. fleettwood
    Posted July 10, 2007 at 2:35 pm | Permalink

    “…make Sunday sales profitable for liquor retailers who choose to participate.”

    Make no mistake. Being open on Sundays will not be more profitable, but less. The amount of booze bought will not change. It is about convenience.

  8. Vaughn Tolle
    Posted July 10, 2007 at 2:37 pm | Permalink

    It is all about the convenience. We had decided to have a nice Sunday “supper”, and went to Dillons for the appropriate meat, etc. (pork chops, for those interested) to do on the grill set up as an indirect cooker/semi-smoker Sunday afternoon. Upon leaving the store, we lamented not thinking in advance to obtain a bottle of wine to have with dinner. Voila, to the package store next to Dillons at Central and Rock for a bottle of wine, then home to cook, and about two hours later, enjoy dinner with a glass of wine (or two, in my case). No driving thereafter, just a relaxing early evening meal with a little wine. Sure, the pork chops, etc., would have been good without the beverage, but it just made it better for us. I guess I’m headed for the fates described by those upthread, huh?

  9. Posted July 10, 2007 at 2:39 pm | Permalink

    Wait…all it takes to expand my potential dating pool is Sunday alcohol sales????

    Dammit all! Too bad I’m not single!

  10. ksfarmgrrl
    Posted July 10, 2007 at 2:39 pm | Permalink

    hee hee hee Vaughn. You could only HOPE to be headed toward those fates :)

  11. Posted July 10, 2007 at 2:42 pm | Permalink

    pssst Vaughn,

    You should try to do what the Germans do with no way to buy wine on Sundays. They have wine storage racks with their favorite selections of wine!

    What a concept!

    In fact, most stores are closed on Sundays! There is a law in Germany for making too much noise on Sundays!

    Those pious Germans! What’s wrong with them! :)

  12. Ben
    Posted July 10, 2007 at 2:42 pm | Permalink

    VT – so true. HOWEVER – where are MY pork chops?

    ;^)

  13. Jed
    Posted July 10, 2007 at 3:00 pm | Permalink

    Tom,On Seduction-Candy is dandyBut liquor is quicker.-Ogden Nash-

  14. stumper
    Posted July 10, 2007 at 3:07 pm | Permalink

    “HOWEVER – where are MY pork chops?”

    Try Newton.

  15. Scott
    Posted July 10, 2007 at 3:25 pm | Permalink

    God will punish Kansas for allowing Sunday sales to occur. He will send tornados, hail, wind, oppressive heat and bitter cold to ravage the flat, barren landscape. Those who have despoiled the lord’s day will pay for your transgressions.

  16. Tony
    Posted July 10, 2007 at 3:29 pm | Permalink

    The sad thing is i cant tell if Scott is serious or sarcastic…

    The sad thing is that there are actually people out there dumb enough to write crap like that.

  17. gster
    Posted July 10, 2007 at 3:35 pm | Permalink

    Scott- What you describe sounds like a normal Kansas year.

    Anyway, what about the locusts?

    Don’t they get a piece of the action?

  18. littlejohn
    Posted July 10, 2007 at 3:35 pm | Permalink

    “God will punish Kansas for allowing Sunday sales to occur. He will send tornados, hail, wind, oppressive heat and bitter cold to ravage the flat, barren landscape”

    He must be joking, because that sounds like typical Kansas weather to me.

  19. Tony
    Posted July 10, 2007 at 3:42 pm | Permalink

    good point LJ…

  20. Mary Caruso
    Posted July 10, 2007 at 3:53 pm | Permalink

    Why can’t they sell it in the grocery stores, too? I went to buy a 6 pack to go with our pizza and was turned down at the register. All the liquor stores closed at 6pm.

  21. littlejohn
    Posted July 10, 2007 at 3:56 pm | Permalink

    Mary-

    I thought they could. Wal mart was selling beer this Sunday, or was it Dillons?

  22. fleettwood
    Posted July 10, 2007 at 3:58 pm | Permalink

    “Wal mart was selling beer this Sunday, or was it Dillons?”

    It was neither, legally.

  23. Mary Caruso
    Posted July 10, 2007 at 4:05 pm | Permalink

    I went to White’s in Goddard, they told me it was illegal for grocery stores to sell it on Sunday. What difference does it make?

  24. Ben
    Posted July 10, 2007 at 4:08 pm | Permalink

    Goddard might not have allowed Sunday sales. It is a city option.

  25. littlejohn
    Posted July 10, 2007 at 4:08 pm | Permalink

    “Wal mart was selling beer this Sunday, or was it Dillons?”

    It was neither, legally.

    Posted by: fleettwood | July 10, 2007 at 03:58 PM

    I could have sworn I saw a sign that said alcohol able to be purchased between the hours of — and the hours of —. But, I could always be wrong

  26. fleettwood
    Posted July 10, 2007 at 4:08 pm | Permalink

    “What difference does it make?”

    It has something to with QT can sell snacks and liquor stores can’t. It is complicated. Maybe after the turn of the next century…

  27. cjk
    Posted July 10, 2007 at 4:14 pm | Permalink

    Sunday liquor sales start today in WichitaBY BRENT WISTROMThe Wichita EagleStarting today, dozens of Wichita liquor, convenience and grocery stores will be able to sell alcoholic beverages seven days a week.

    Stores can now sell from noon to 8 p.m. Sundays, but they’ll still be closed on Easter, Christmas and Thanksgiving.

    Wichita reached this latest relaxation of alcohol restrictions after the City Council voted April 24 to allow Sunday sales.

    Wade Moore, pastor of Christian Faith Centre, immediately began a petition to force a citywide vote on the issue, but about 60 percent of the signatures were rejected because they didn’t match up with voter registration records.

    The petition was 1,470 signatures short of the 6,701 needed, so the council’s decision automatically became law.

    That makes Wichita one of more than 50 cities in Kansas to approve Sunday sales since all-week sales were first allowed in 2005.

    In the Wichita area, Cheney, Colwich, Andale, Douglass, Walton, Benton, Garden Plain, Maize, Park City, Kechi, Andover and unincorporated Sedgwick County have also approved Sunday alcohol sales.

    Although stores are allowed to be open, they don’t have to be.

  28. Scott
    Posted July 10, 2007 at 4:16 pm | Permalink

    The strange rules regarding grocery stores was one of the hardest things to get used to when I first moved here. I lived most of my life in an area where you could buy beer, wine and spirits at the same place you bought your groceries. It was rare to see a standalone liquor store and most of them stayed in business due to the drive up windows that businesses like grocery stores and Walgreens didn’t have. And they didn’t have this 3.2% beer versus the real stuff either. The Kansas alcohol laws are bizarre to say the least and other than placating a few religious nutcases, do nothing to cut down on consumption or drunken driving. They are the type of “feel good, do nothing” laws that conservatives usually tend to rail against. Once again it seems in conservative politics, support for the free market always hinges on whose ox is being gored.

  29. Posted July 10, 2007 at 4:17 pm | Permalink

    Ben is a chemist, he don’t need no package store! He can make his own hootch! :D

  30. Mary Caruso
    Posted July 10, 2007 at 4:21 pm | Permalink

    Well, next time I get pizza, I’ll stop in at Walmart to buy my beer!

  31. Ben
    Posted July 10, 2007 at 5:07 pm | Permalink

    Hey Republican – my family roots come from the East Tenneessee hills – I don’t need my chemistry!

  32. littlejohn
    Posted July 10, 2007 at 5:08 pm | Permalink

    “And they didn’t have this 3.2% beer versus the real stuff either.”

    That’s too bad. As silly as it sounds, I like the choice of 3.2% beer Sometimes I want a beer without the buzz. I like beer. I don;t always like buzz

  33. fleettwood
    Posted July 10, 2007 at 5:12 pm | Permalink

    Somebody, please clarify. Can QT and Dillons sell beer on Sunday or not?

  34. littlejohn
    Posted July 10, 2007 at 5:13 pm | Permalink

    “The Kansas alcohol laws are bizarre to say the least and other than placating a few religious nutcases, do nothing to cut down on consumption or drunken driving. They are the type of “feel good, do nothing” laws that conservatives usually tend to rail against. Once again it seems in conservative politics, support for the free market always hinges on whose ox is being gored.”

    Haha. You apparently know nothing about Kansas alcohol laws. They are a piece of cake, and extremely liberal, compared to what they were 30 years ago. Confusing, constricting, making no sense. They’ve come a long ways baby

  35. fleettwood
    Posted July 10, 2007 at 5:14 pm | Permalink

    “I like beer. I don;t always like buzz”

    Blasphemer! The Liver is our enemy. We must do all we can to wreck it.

  36. littlejohn
    Posted July 10, 2007 at 5:16 pm | Permalink

    sorry I forgot the creed of beer drinkers everywhere! I will try and do better. :)

  37. fleettwood
    Posted July 10, 2007 at 5:17 pm | Permalink

    “extremely liberal, compared to what they were 30 years ago.”

    That’s not saying much. Like when you had to buy liquor card that stayed at the bar and you had to re-charge it to get more.What a cluster Fark.We have moved into the ’80’s. That’s about it.

  38. cjk
    Posted July 10, 2007 at 6:09 pm | Permalink

    Somebody, please clarify. Can QT and Dillons sell beer on Sunday or not?

    Posted by: fleettwood | July 10, 2007 at 05:12 PM

    From the story I posted above, Grocery and convenience (sp?) stores IN CITY LIMITS can sell it noon to 8

    Sunday liquor sales start today in WichitaBY BRENT WISTROMThe Wichita EagleStarting today, dozens of Wichita liquor, convenience and grocery stores will be able to sell alcoholic beverages seven days a week

    snipped

  39. Joe Williams
    Posted July 10, 2007 at 6:12 pm | Permalink

    Liquor stores don’t make money from the average person who goes in there rarely to buy some wine or a case of beer for a fishing trip. They make money off the drunks who go in there everyday.

    I had a friend that worked in one for several years. He said you had your daily customers that came in there every day.

  40. fleettwood
    Posted July 10, 2007 at 6:13 pm | Permalink

    cjk- I saw that. I don’t believe it. We may see a correction on page 2 any day now.

  41. fleettwood
    Posted July 10, 2007 at 6:13 pm | Permalink

    “They make money off the drunks who go in there everyday.”

    No Duh?

  42. political_mom
    Posted July 10, 2007 at 7:38 pm | Permalink

    It’s just too bad some people have to booze it up every day.

  43. Jimmy
    Posted July 10, 2007 at 7:48 pm | Permalink

    It’s just too bad that some people have to be judgemental pricks.

  44. Posted July 10, 2007 at 7:53 pm | Permalink

    I was thinking about investing in the organ transplant project that specializes in livers. Now would be a good time as business will be brisk in a few years.

  45. Kev
    Posted July 10, 2007 at 9:04 pm | Permalink

    Well good for Wichita! When I come there for my HS reunion next weekend, I will not have to remember to buy my Bud Lite on Saturday!

  46. Elizabeth K
    Posted July 10, 2007 at 9:46 pm | Permalink

    Does anyone seriously believe that Sunday liquor sales will increase the amount of drinking that people already do?

  47. Joe Williams
    Posted July 10, 2007 at 10:12 pm | Permalink

    On Saturday? Why not get some Bud Skinny on Sunday?

  48. Posted July 10, 2007 at 10:15 pm | Permalink

    Does anyone seriously believe that Sunday liquor sales will increase the amount of drinking that people already do?

    Posted by: Elizabeth K | July 10, 2007 at 09:46 PM

    No, they will buy bottles of hootch so they can collect dust.

  49. political_mom
    Posted July 10, 2007 at 11:11 pm | Permalink

    Ohh, touchy there Jimmy? Daily drinker there are ya?

    As WS says “If you don’t get help at Charter, get help somewhere.”

  50. Scott
    Posted July 11, 2007 at 10:30 am | Permalink

    PMom, what business is it of yours if someone drinks on a Sunday or everyday? The entire world hates self righteous busybodies like you.

  51. littlejohn
    Posted July 11, 2007 at 10:35 am | Permalink

    Scott-Political Mom and I disagree on a great many things, but she is far from a “self righteous busybodies”.maybe before you throw around names, you should get to know what and who you are talking about. Sorry, that would make sense, wouldn’t it.

  52. cjk
    Posted July 11, 2007 at 11:51 am | Permalink

    I just called Kolb’s office and after being transfered around and finally ending up at the city clerks office the word I received was that is does not say :) but the stance they are taking is that anyone who is licensed to sell during the week can also sell on sunday’s, so liquor stores, dillons, qt, wl-mart, target etc.

    Clear as mud

  53. Posted July 11, 2007 at 11:57 am | Permalink

    ‘The point of the change’ is that what you are free to do on Monday you should be free to do on Sunday. Either it’s acceptable or it’s not acceptable.

  54. littlejohn
    Posted July 11, 2007 at 12:04 pm | Permalink

    That’s not saying much. Like when you had to buy liquor card that stayed at the bar and you had to re-charge it to get more.What a cluster Fark.We have moved into the ’80’s. That’s about it.

    Posted by: fleettwood | July 10, 2007 at 05:17 PM

    Haha. Apparently you are too young to remember the even more strict laws of the seventies. Such as no recipricol memberships, no liquor cards–you had to be a member of THAT club, and there had to be a bottle with YOUR name on it, at least as I recall.You’ve still come a long way baby. Is there more to go? Sure. I don;t care when liquor stores are open. THey could be 24/7 for all I care. Of course, I live in a small commmuity. The sidewalks roll up at 7 pm. Planning is a condition I am used to.

  55. Vaughn Tolle
    Posted July 11, 2007 at 12:08 pm | Permalink

    That’s how I remember it, too, LJ.

  56. SolDevVB
    Posted July 11, 2007 at 12:12 pm | Permalink

    I guess I don’t understand the issue. If you don’t want to buy liquor on Sunday, don’t do it. If you don’t want to see liquor being purchased on Sunday, don’t go to the liquor store.

    Did Jesus tell us not to drink on Sunday? Didn’t he have wine with most meals? Was it only water on Sunday?

    Freakin Sat. is the sabbath anyway. Geeez !!!

  57. WichiWomn
    Posted July 11, 2007 at 2:56 pm | Permalink

    PMom, I think whether one drinks daily is not the issue. Even the health experts say one a day is good for you. It’s HOW one drinks. I’d be more concerned with someone’s behavior such as do they become abusive or drive,or drink till they pass out? I know many that enjoy their 1-2 beers or glasses of wine on a daily basis but they never get drunk. I don’t really have a problem with that. To each their own.