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Economic Roundtable lecture to continue online

By Michele Newbanks 4 min read

The annual Milton Friedman Lecture will continue this year in a different manner.

In its 37th year, the event traditionally was a luncheon for members and guests of the Economic Roundtable of the Ohio Valley, alternating each year between the Marietta and Parkersburg country clubs, said Greg Delemeester, vice president of programs for the organization.

This year's speaker, Bart Watson, chief economist at the Brewers Association, will discuss "The Economics of Small Brewers".

"Given the environment we're currently in, we can find out how particular industries react or respond to the pandemic," Delemeester said. "How are they surviving? What kind of lessons can we learn?"

This year, instead of holding the luncheon in person, it was switched to Zoom, he added.

The Roundtable's speaker series is open to its members only, but will be a free event that is open to the public this year.

The Economic Roundtable of the Ohio Valley was formed from a joint effort between the business and economics department at Marietta College and local business, civic and educational leaders.

The hour-long discussion will begin at 7 p.m. Tuesday. Those interested in attending the lecture can sign up for the Zoom event ateconomicroundtable.org.

Delemeester said he found Watson through social media, as he follows a number of economists.

"I became aware of him through his social media postings," he explained.

Watson leads the Brewers Association's statistical and economic work, including industry and consumer surveys, economic analysis and market research, Tom Perry, vice president for communication and brand management at Marietta College, said. He is the leading expert on the economics of small breweries and the beverage alcohol industry.

Local breweries from Cincinnati and Parkersburg will have their beers available at The Busy Bee starting today. Larry Sloter, owner of the local eatery, said he applied for a liquor license on Jan. 8, 2020, which was just recently granted.

"It took 362 days," he said. "The only response I got (for why) is that things were moving slowly because of COVID."

He said there will be a handful of beers and a handful of cocktails available during the restaurant's open hours of 6:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sunday.

"The only restriction we have on the license is Sunday alcohol sales," he said. "But we can start when we open each morning."

He said they've been talking about serving alcohol as far back as 2017 or 2018.

"We just wanted to be able to expand our offerings," he explained. "We want to be able to do specialty dinners or rent out for office parties and having our license opens those opportunities for us."

The Bee is known for having locally sourced ingredients and the local theme is extended to their new venture.

"We're trying to follow our local theme by using Rhinegeist Breweries out of Cincinnati and by carrying two Parkersburg Brewery beers," Sloter said.

Orange juice for cocktails is freshly squeezed at the restaurant and the honey sweetener is also locally sourced.

He said they will have "brunch-oriented" cocktails available, such as mimosas, tequila sunrise, Bloody Marys and peach bellinis.

"We'll keep them along those lines," he said.

Sloter said people have been excited and interested in the changes he's making at the Bee.

"There are a handful that are concerned or worried that we continue to change," he noted.

"We think of it as one more step forward. After COVID hit, it's important we have additional avenues for revenue. I think for the most part, customers are on board with it."

Michele Newbanks can be reached at mnewbanks@mariettatimes.com.

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