The Lamar County Board of Supervisors is considering allowing the Little Black Creek Campground and Park to serve beer and light wine by requesting Qualified Resort Area status from the state Department of Revenue.
Rae Turner, attorney for Little Black Creek Campground and Park, told the supervisors at their meeting Thursday morning park owners have been successful in improving and promoting the park.
“One of the things that they provide is catering services for groups who are having events at the park, like weddings and reunions,” he said. “At present, because it’s a dry county, they can’t serve any alcoholic beverages or provide them for guests who are coming to these events. That creates something of a problem because it means people are bringing alcohol to some of these events, even though it is a dry area. The Nettleses, as operators of the park, have no control over that, but they do have some exposure if injuries on the park as a result of intoxication.”
Mississippi laws provide for a Qualified Resort Area in a dry county. The board of supervisors can apply to the Department of Revenue to have a specific area designated as a resort area. That would then allow for the licensing to sell on-premise beer, light wine and other alcoholic beverages.
Turner said the number of tourists and vacationers at the park justify the resort status.
“Over the past 12 months, there have been more than 9,600 visitors who stayed overnight at the campground or the park and thousands more who have come on day trips,” he said, adding that visitors have come from 46 states and six Canadian provinces. “Clearly, the word is spreading about the park, and it is a beautiful place to come and visit.”
Among the special events that have been staged at the park include a fishing rodeo, the Halloween parade, the Fourth of July fireworks and the Mardi Gras four-wheeler parade.
Turner said the park owners are holding celebrations that could involve light wine.
“More and more, they are doing more events like weddings, family reunions and family-oriented events,” he said. “Those are the things that they are trying to provide catering to these larger events.”
Turner spelled out the specifics for what a Qualified Resort Area would mean for the campground.
“If the application is approved, the Nettleses will attempt to apply for an application for beer and light wine retailer permit only,” he said. “There would be no hard liquor and there would be no package liquor sales or permit requested. The area we are asking to be designated encompasses only the land that is owned by Pat Harrison Waterway District and is leased to Little Black Creek Campground. There would not be areas outside the control of the park where someone could come in and make an application for package sales license.”
Turner said the resort status would give the Nettleses more authority over alcohol consumption in the park.
“Having the ability to do this would give them greater control over the sales and the dispensing and consumption of alcohol on the premises and give them a little better control and safety on the premises because there wouldn’t be much uncontrolled alcohol use there,” he said. “Also, it would make it more possible for them to be more pro-active in limiting or prohibiting bringing alcohol onto the premises.”
According to Board Attorney Perry Phillips, 13 areas qualify as resort areas according to state statute. District 4 Supervisor Phillip Carlisle said Lamar County already has six Qualified Resort Areas, and none of those had to come before the board.
District 3 Supervisor Warren Byrd, who district include the park, said he has no problem with approving the resort status.
“At any given time on any given day, you can see campers going to the park,” he said. “We’ve never done (the resort status) before, but I know every situation is different.”
Carlisle said people will bring alcohol into the park if they want to bring alcohol.
“If it will keep them from driving after they get it, then I am going to be for it,” he said. “The only thing I can tell you for sure is if they want it, they are going to bring it. The more things we can do to keep them off the road, the better it is. I want to keep them off the road.”
Byrd said he has not received complaints about the park, which includes 114 RV sites and 20 cabins.
“I have never had anybody call me complaining about an event that has gone on out there,” he said. “That’s why I continue to support you growing. I remember when that facility cost us money; now, it makes us money.”
Jordan Nettles, one of the park owners, said the largest number of people in the park for a special event was 5,400 during the Halloween Parade.
The next meeting for the Board of Supervisors will be 9 a.m. July 2 at the William J. “Pete” Gamble III Chancery Courthouse in Purvis.
