Liquor Sales Slow In Rural Counties

"We never thought it was going to be such a big deal as others did," restaurant owner Wayne Norman said. "We get busy on Friday and Saturday night. During the week, it's not a big deal."

Roxboro had hoped by now that some national chain restaurants would have located in the area.

The town is counting on business growth to support the expansion of Palace Point into an entertainment and convention center. Officials said the concept is part of a long range plan -- a plan of slow, steady growth that could take years to realize.

"Well, actually, we are really happy and very pleased with it. We had a lot of objections, of course, from the opponents," said Adrian McLean, of the Roxboro Chamber of Commerce. "As they see, we haven't opened any bad establishments or anything like that. It remains the same."

Despite Person County's approval of mixed drinks, you still cannot buy liquor by the drink in neighboring Granville and Caswell counties.