Prohibition May Finally End in One Connecticut Town

Connecticut's last dry town is on the verge of a historic decision: whether to allow two local developers to open restaurants that serve alcohol, the AP reports. As it stands, the upscale bedroom community of Bridgewater is on the sleepy side, with 1,700 people, an average age above 50, and only a single school (which the state is threatening to shut down). So alcohol in restaurants "would tend to enliven the town," said First Selectman Curtis Read—as would the restaurants themselves, since Bridgewater doesn't currently have any, the Litchfield County Times reports. (It does have bars run by residents in their garages, but that's another story.)

For the repeal of Prohibition to pass—81 years after the 18th Amendment was cast aside—the developers need a simple majority in a vote on Tuesday. And they're saying a "no" vote would be a dealbreaker, because restaurants just can't survive without serving drinks: "Both restaurants are dependent upon being able to serve alcohol," said a developer's rep. "It’s not only on an economic level, but it’s about being competitive and creating an ambiance of what people expect to have in their dining experience." Two neat factoids: The vote would only be a "partial" repeal (for alcohol served in restaurants), and local resident Mia Farrow may be among the voters. (More Prohibition stories.)