From Lapeer To Berkshire: Dry Towns In New York Await Alcohol Bill Decision

It's a Saturday night and you are looking to go out for an evening of fun at a local establishment that serves alcohol. Well, for a few communities in New York State, that's just not possible.

Yes, there are still a few areas in New York State that continue to be classified as 'dry towns.' No establishments in these municipalities (or in some cases around the United States, counties) are allowed to sell alcohol.

According to Wikipedia, seven such towns in New York State are dry towns including Lapeer in Cortland County, Fremont and Jasper in Steuben County, and Berkshire in Tioga County. Wikipedia also notes that Spencer in Tioga County allows only off-premises and special on-premises consumption.

Granted, most of these towns are small communities, but one - Caneadea, a township in Allegany County, has a population of over 2000. Surely, some would love to have an establishment in town that can serve alcohol, rather than driving to the next town that does have businesses that sell alcohol.

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Soon, dry towns could become a thing of the past. According to the Associated Press, a bill has been drawn up, designed to end the local option of towns and cities in New York State to prohibit the sale of alcohol. The law was established in 1934, just after Prohibition, allowing New York State towns to opt to stay dry, according to ABC News.

Assembly Bill A9071 advanced out of committee and is now up for a vote in the New York State Senate. If it passes through the Senate and Assembly and is signed by Governor Kathy Hochul, communities in the Empire State will no longer have the option to be a dry town.

The Associated Press notes that there are several towns in the United States that fully or partially ban alcohol sales, including Pennsylvania, which has approximately 675 communities that have some sort of alcohol restriction.