New Jersey city could lift ban on alcohol sales after 120 years

Cheers! In one New Jersey town, the ban may finally be over.

One of the last “dry towns” in the Garden State could finally allow restaurants to sell liquor after 120 years.

Voters in Haddon Heights, a suburb about seven miles southeast of Camden County, are weighing on Election Day the question of whether retail licenses should be allowed again after more than a century, NJ.com reported.

Founded in 1904, Haddon Heights has no liquor stores or bars. According to the New Jersey Licensed Beverage Association, it is one of 30 communities in Jersey that does not allow licenses for retail consumption.

However, Tuesday’s voting proposal is non-binding, so the local council would still have the final say.

Haddon Heights Mayor Zachary Houck hopes to make a statement by allowing liquor sales and says the change could help reshape the borough’s business district.

“If the community comes out and expresses an opinion that says we are strongly opposed to it, I think most of the council would be more likely to say, OK,” Houck said. “If it’s a split decision, we have to make the decision there.”

Gov. Phil Murphy has expressed support for and signed legislation increasing the number of restaurant liquor licenses in New Jersey.

Even if the booze cruise were approved, it wouldn’t set sail yet.

New Jersey law allows one liquor retail license per 3,000 residents, and Haddon Heights is home to only about 7,400 people — so only two restaurants would receive retail licenses if the proposal passes.

Last year, the city of Rutherford in Bergen County issued its first liquor license to a restaurant in more than a century after voters approved a ballot question.

Cape May County passed a resolution in September to maintain its alcohol sales ban, which has been in effect for 115 years, according to NJ.com.