A group of Landrum residents and businesses has formed to get more tourists to the city, with the first project being trying to get citizens to approve a referendum allowing restaurants to sell alcohol on Sundays.
Landrum Tomorrow has sent out approximately 400 mailers explaining the organization’s view of the revenue benefits the city would see from the passage of the alcohol referendum.

Suzanne Strickland, who started Landrum Tomorrow, said the group will also do other projects to help bring more tourists to Landrum, with one of the ultimate goals of bringing a hotel to the city.
“We have to get foot traffic,” Strickland said. “We have to look at the big picture. It’s not just about selling alcohol on Sundays. It’s about getting people to visit.”
Landrum Tomorrow said passing the referendum would bring $15,000 in new annual revenue for the city from permit fees that qualifying restaurants would purchase, in addition to creating 15 new jobs to handle the additional business, $510,000 in additional gross sales per year for restaurants and $10,450 in additional hospitality tax and business license fee revenue for the city.
The referendum will be included on the ballot next Tuesday, Nov. 8 for the local election, along with city council and school board elections.
Strickland said Landrum Tomorrow members have also hired a phone bank to call the 400 households in the city limits that include Landrum’s 1,300 registered voters.
“We have local restaurant owners, small business owners and interested citizens, all of whom trust adults to make the same kind of choices they make every other day of the week,” said Strickland. “On Tuesday, Nov. 8, we are confident that city residents will vote yes to trust adults to decide for themselves, yes to strengthen our local economy and yes to putting us on an equal footing with Greenville, Spartanburg, Greer and Tryon.”
The idea of a referendum was brought to city council this year by Landrum businesses and council agreed to place the following question on this year’s ballot for residents to decide:
“Shall the South Carolina Department of Revenue be authorized to issue temporary permits in this city for a period not to exceed 24 hours to allow the possession, sale and consumption of alcoholic liquors by the drink to bona fide nonprofit organizations and business establishments otherwise authorized to be licensed for consumption-on-premise sales?”
A majority vote will be required to pass the referendum. If approved, restaurants in the city limits would be able to serve alcohol on Sundays. The referendum will not affect off-site alcohol sales, such as from convenience or grocery stores. The state of South Carolina is dry on Sundays, but many cities have approved referendums allowing restaurants to serve alcohol. North Carolina allows Sunday alcohol sales both on-site and off-site.
Restaurant owners told city council that they have had to close on Sundays as a result of decreased business because alcohol can be sold on Sunday in nearby areas, such as Columbus, Saluda and Tryon in North Carolina and Spartanburg and Greenville in South Carolina.
Strickland said the passage of the referendum would help other businesses in addition to restaurants, such as antique shops, because it will bring more people to Landrum and they will not only eat but will visit shops.
Landrum Tomorrow’s mission is to focus on the quality of life in Landrum and it economic growth and stability, Strickland said. Landrum Tomorrow meets once per week at Landrum City Hall. For more information about the referendum or Landrum Tomorrow, contact Suzanne Strickland at 828-817-1079. Strickland is the owner of Stone Soup in Landrum.