New legislation that would make it easier for grocers to sell beer in stores has some local merchants excited, while others feel it takes away from their core business.

Sen. David Argall has proposed a bill to exempt small grocery stores from having to build a 30-seat cafe to get a retail liquor license, which allows them to sell six-packs of beer.John Hopcraft, an Argall aide, said this week that the bill should "level the playing field" for midsize grocery stores around the state."A store like Boyer's or Redner's, they don't have the space to create an eatery," Hopcraft said.Local grocers in Carbon County have mixed views about having the opportunity to sell beer without a cafe.At 10,000 square feet, Mallard Market in Lehighton falls squarely into the category of stores 8,000-55,000 square feet that would be exempted from the café requirement.Owner Frank Kuhn said it would make it easier for stores like his."I see it as legislation that would help smaller stores, and something I'd like to see to fruition," he said.Small stores like Mallard have to do a lot to compete with their larger counterparts, and beer is the latest frontier in that competition."As more and more grocery stores carry beer, it will be important to carry that product just to give them the option," he said.Country Harvest Family Market in Palmerton would also fall into that category.But owner Chris Anthony said he wouldn't be interested, because of a variety of factors."It's not something we're shooting for," he said.The idea of plastering the store with beer ads doesn't personally appeal to him. The store actually stopped selling tobacco last year for similar reasons.There's also a business motivation - he would have to give up valuable shelf space for a product that is available from many other outlets.But he said he could understand the attraction among other businesses."I would guess that larger stores view it as an attraction for getting more customers in your stores," he said.For decades, Pennsylvania's policies against selling beer in grocery and convenience stores have frustrated customers from other states.The situation was mitigated somewhat after a long court battle resulted in a decision that permitted grocery stores to carry suds, with the "R" license.