Huntingdon Council Approves Cash Saver’s Beer Request

HUNTINGDON (February 24) — After months of discussion and ordinance changes, Huntingdon’s Beer Board has approved a request allowing Cash Saver to sell packaged beer for off-premises consumption.

The decision came during Tuesday’s Huntingdon Beer Board meeting, which followed the Huntingdon Town Council meeting. Board members present were Will Atkins, Chad Barnhart, Lori Dillahunty, John Sanders and Mayor Chad Edwards. Vice Mayor Andrew Maddox and council members Daniel and Kelly Eubanks were absent.

The board considered an application filed for Cash Saver, located at 20150 Main Street East, Huntingdon, Tennessee 38344, seeking a permit to sell beer at retail for off-premises consumption. The application was submitted by Tabitha Lee Pierce, store manager and contact person for the business.

On the final vote, the measure passed 3–1, with Atkins voting no.

The request was first presented to the town council in September 2025, when Cash Saver store supervisor Jackie Streetman petitioned the council to allow packaged beer sales at the grocery store.

At the time, Huntingdon’s municipal code prohibited businesses located within 1,000 feet of a school, church or public gathering place — including public playgrounds and parks — from selling beer for on- or off-premises consumption. Cash Saver is located across the road from Thomas Park, a veterans memorial site.

Streetman argued the memorial site should not prevent the store from selling beer, stating it is not a recreational park. She also told council members that other E.W. James stores in the region sell beer and wine products and that one store’s beer sales exceed the total sales of other locations. She said the restriction placed the Huntingdon store at a competitive disadvantage and resulted in missed revenue for both the business and the town.

In November 2025, after reviewing the area between the store and Thomas Park, the council voted to amend the Alcoholic Beverages section of the municipal code. The change allows issuance of a permit within 300 feet in B-1 (Neighborhood Business District) and B-2 (General Business District) zones.

During that review, officials also discovered the Cash Saver building had been incorrectly zoned as R-2 (Medium Density Residential), while only its parking lot was designated B-1. On first reading in November, the council agreed to amend the official zoning map to rezone a portion of the James Realty (Cash Saver) property to B-1 from R-2.

With the zoning amendment and ordinance changes in place, the Beer Board’s vote on February 24 cleared the final step for Cash Saver to begin selling packaged beer for off-premises consumption.