Marshall Mayor Bob Byrnes, center, and City Administrator Sharon Hanson, in background, pitched in for a shift at Tall Grass Liquor on Friday, helping bag customers’ purchases and carry them out to the car. The two officials said they enjoyed getting to meet with the community, and the event was a reminder that the city-owned liquor store helps reinvest in Marshall.

MARSHALL — Customers shopping at Tall Grass Liquor in Marshall might not think about the store being a city-owned business. But on Friday afternoon, it showed — the crew of workers helping to wrap holiday purchases or carry cases of beer out to customers’ vehicles included a couple of volunteers from City Hall.

Marshall Mayor Bob Byrnes and City Administrator Sharon Hanson wore Tall Grass shirts and worked alongside store employees Friday, during the pre-Christmas rush.

Hanson and Byrnes said they enjoyed getting a chance to help out Friday.

“A lot of times, we’re stuck behind a desk or in meetings,” Hanson said. “This gives us the opportunity to be out in our community.”

But the shift at Tall Grass was more than just a chance to get out and meet with the public. It was an opportunity to talk about how the liquor store impacts the city of Marshall.

“It’s a really positive thing for the community,” said Tall Grass Liquor manager Eric Luther. Revenue from the store gets reinvested into the city.

“Municipal liquor in Minnesota has a long history,” Byrnes said. After the end of Prohibition, many Minnesota cities established municipal liquor stores as a way to control the sale of alcohol in the community. But municipal liquor stores can also help generate revenue for a city.

Hanson estimated Tall Grass Liquor generates around $300,000 a year in revenue for the city. That’s a positive, because it helps reduce property taxes for Marshall residents, she and Byrnes said. In the past, there have also been larger amounts of funding transferred from the liquor store to help pay for city projects. Byrnes said around $1 million went to help build the current Marshall-Lyon County Library. Before that, funds from the municipal liquor store also went toward flood control measures in Marshall, and to expansion of the Marshall airport, he said.

Byrnes said this year marks the third anniversary of Tall Grass Liquor opening. The new location offers a lot of things the former municipal liquor store on East College Drive didn’t, like more shopping space and variety for customers, and more parking.

Luther said the holiday season, especially the lead-up to Christmas, tends to be the busiest time of year for Tall Grass Liquor.

“We do a lot of our business that weekend before,” he said. “By far, these are the busiest days of the year.”