Moose Droppings

Raising a Frosty Beer for the Polar Bear

Aug 05, 2008 @ 08:05 am by Moose

The director of the North Carolina Zoo, Dr David Jones, is supporting the lifting of Asheboro’s ban on alcohol sales.

Dr. David Jones says the approval of alcohol sales could generate a substantial increase in attendance and places the zoo in a stronger position to expand.
“It puts us in a situation at the zoo where we can more actively, perhaps more aggressively, pursue a hotel and meeting facilities, a conference facility on-site here, expand our evening functions,” he listed.

News 14

The sale of alcohol is a local issue here in North Carolina but of course the sale of hard liquor is a monopoly controlled operation by the state. I’m just not sure a state public official should be weighing in on this issue in any way that can be viewed as he is endorsing one side or the other.

While I see nothing wrong with drinking I do see a conflict with the state having a monopoly on alcohol as well as state officials pressuring the locals about the law. The reality is that expansion of the zoo is more a numbers game when it comes to the overall attendance and although alcohol sales could affect that there are other influences as well.
Seems like every city and town is banking on attracting conferences and meetings by building these types of venues. I think too much hype by public officials gets put into the “conference facilities” angle at a time when some of those traditional activities could go away. The cost of travel has risen sharply over the last few months and technology is at a place where virtual meetings can happen that travel is no longer a necessity. As business and people look to adjust costs and trim budgets I’m not sure that traditional meetings in one location will continue to take place.

Adding alcohol to the zoo could bring some unwanted changes as well and tarnish the family friendly image. The bottom line is that Dr. Jones is in a position that is supported and paid for by the tax payers of North Carolina I’m not sure that lobbying for the lifting of the sale of alcohol is within the role of what he was hired to do.

Story and Photo by Dan McLaughlin AKA Moose