Letter: Drug & Alcohol Task Force on Issuing Beer/Wine License to Convenient Store

The following is a letter from the Burlington Drug & Alcohol Task Force:

The Burlington Drug and Alcohol Task Force has voted to support a resolution opposing the recent decision by Burlington’s Board of Selectmen at their March 25 meeting to grant a liquor license for beer and wine sales to Carli’s Convenience Store and Gas Station. 

The Task Force believes that in granting a liquor license to a convenience store, the Board of Selectmen is setting a troubling precedent.  Over the ten years that the Town of Burlington has been conducting alcohol compliance checks on local package stores and restaurants, it has become clear that the business of controlling access to alcohol for minors can be very challenging.  The package store owners and restaurant owners have worked very closely with the Selectmen and the Burlington Police Department to raise their standard of compliance to a very high level.  Package store owners are professionals with years of experience at recognizing attempts to procure alcohol illegally.  Youth are not welcome to loiter in their establishments, and alarm bells go off in the minds of package store staff when minors appear.

In contrast, convenience stores tend to be very inviting to youth and serve a variety of items attractive to them.  The hours of convenience store operation are far broader than those of package stores, which means that there will potentially be constant temptation to bend the rules regarding when alcohol will be made available.  For instance, if a police officer drives by a package store and sees teenagers loitering, a bell will go off.  But will that happen when teens gather around a convenience store? 

And then there is the matter of staffing.  Most convenience stores operate with limited counter staff, and this writer has visited Carli’s Convenience Store on several occasions and never seen more than one counter staff on duty.  And that counter staff’s attention is often very divided between managing the counter and managing the gas pumps.  In such an environment, carefully examination of identification is likely to prove very challenging.

This decision by the Board of selectmen should have been made on the basis of what is best for Burlington youth.  There is ample evidence to show that density of alcohol-serving establishments is strongly correlated with frequency of underage drinking related problems.  Controlling access is key to reducing such problems, and the Task Force feels strongly that access to alcohol should not be convenient.

April is National Alcohol Awareness Month, and the Drug and Alcohol Task Force will be promoting a 10^th Annual Alcohol-Free Weekend in Burlington over the weekend of April 26^th-28^th, with a Kick-Off Celebration on the Town Common on Friday, April 26^th from 5pm to 7pm.  We encourage all Burlington residents to think and speak clearly about all issues related to alcohol use, to their neighbors, their Town Meeting members, their Selectmen, and especially to their children.  Let’s all work to keep Burlington healthy.  

Signed,

-Charlie Franich

-Marilyn Belmonte

Co-Chairpersons of the Burlington Drug & Alcohol Task Force