Dry regions in Georgetown follow stricter liquor laws, but one group wants to make those regions wet. It’s all in an effort to get local businesses more money.

"This is not a liquor issue. This is an economic issue," Karin Truxillo said.

Truxillo is helping lead the Georgetown Winery Initiative.

"This is leveling the playing field for downtown [and] for Sun City. The areas that are dry versus the areas that are wet. They have an advantage at the present time."

In order to sell beer or wine in dry areas, restaurants have to buy a mixed beverages permit, which costs significantly more than a beer and wine permit.

By making the area wet, those beer and wine permits would become more readily available.

The group started gathering petition signatures last week.

They’re a few days shy of their two month mark to collect 4,800 signatures from Georgetown eligible residents. So far, Truxillo said the Georgetown Winery Initiative has received nearly 2,000 signatures.

There is some concern about creating an easier avenue to beer and wine permits.

"Because alcohol is addicting, it brings with it other elements such as crime, poverty, and domestic disturbance, just to name a few," Heritage Baptist Church spokesperson Dave White.

Truxillo said there are appropriate ordinances in place.

"We have a requirement for restaurants to have a certain amount of food," she said. "We do not allow just bars."

Wineries that run in dry areas are held to a special set of regulations from the Texas Department of Agriculture.

They're required to make their wine in the store. Also, at least half the grapes they use must be grown in Texas.

The Board of Elections must verify the petition signatures before county commissioners can call for the measure to be included on the November ballot.