Area residents yesterday welcomed -- with mixed feelings -- an end to a long-standing ban on liquor stores being open on Sundays.

Richmond's 10 stores, run by the Virginia Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control, opened to customers from 1 to 6 p.m.

A new state law that went into effect July 1 allows ABC stores in cities with 100,000 residents or more to open on Sundays. The change was made in hopes of increasing revenue for the state.

A total of 36 stores in Richmond, Portsmouth, Hampton, Newport News and Chesapeake benefited from the law.

In 2004, a similar law allowed stores in Northern Virginia, Virginia Beach and Norfolk to open on Sundays.

"This is like, 'Oh my God,'" South Side resident Sherry Lincoln said inside the ABC store on Hull Street. "I am from Florida, and we can get alcohol 24/7 there. I think it's great. Virginia is finally getting it."

Managers at several stores in Richmond said business was steady yesterday. At one point, three registers at the Hull Street store were busy.

Preston Carter, manager at the ABC store on Broad Street near Virginia Commonwealth University's Siegel Center, said he was surprised with the number of customers.

"I was expecting it to be a little slower," said Carter, who noted that the day's sales had been like on a regular Monday. "Some stores had people lining up outside at 1 p.m."

Customers at three locations said the extra day is convenient, particularly since many people have parties on Sundays.

Tiffany Murillo of Chesterfield County went to two stores in the county before finding the one on Hull Street open.

"It is good to know I can stock up seven days a week," said Murillo, a bartender who works private parties. She said some people have mixed feelings about the openings because Sunday is traditionally a church day.

"I came from church and even still, I need what I need," she said.

Among the faith community, the reaction is mixed, said Jonathan Barton, director of the Virginia Council of Churches.

"By and large, folks will wish that it didn't happen, but I don't necessarily see a tremendous outcry," he said. "You certainly still had access to beer and wine . . . so the main concern out there is about responsible drinking behavior.

"It's kind of a sign of the times, that commerce, all kinds of commerce happens every day of the week," Barton said. "I would say that you've got a personal responsibility to engage in a behavior that is responsible, that is not detrimental to yourself or detrimental to your community. There is a need to be responsible with the use of alcohol, regardless of when it's available."

Patricia Shipley, senior pastor at Centenary United Methodist Church in Richmond, said she wasn't aware of the change but was disappointed by it.

"I don't want to go back to the old blue laws where everything closed on Sundays," she said. "Still, it is nice to have at least one day when we are not engaged in all kinds of commerce, particularly alcoholic beverages. . . . But it is up to us to observe Sunday as Sabbath."

Of the 331 ABC stores in Virginia, 131 now open on Sundays.

"So far, the feedback from customers has been positive because the measure adds one more day for them to shop," said Philip Bogenberger, an ABC spokesman.

"I would say that the reaction in places that have been open [since 2004] has been positive, and we expect it to be the same in stores [now open]."
Contact Luz Lazo at (804) 649-6058 or llazo@timesdispatch.com.