Selectmen Approve Liquor License for Carli Convenience After Much Discussion

Following a lengthy and sometimes pointed discussion the Board of Selectmen voted 3-2 to approve a beer and wine liquor license to Carli Convenient Plus during the meeting Monday night.

The application hearing was started during the meeting on March 11 and was continued for further discussion.

During the March 11 meeting, members of the board raised a number of concerns. One concern was the floor plan, which had the beer and wine placed adjacent to other non-alcohol products. Another issue was how the store would limit access to the beer and wine during hours when alcohol cannot legally be sold in the state.

The biggest concern raised was that issuing liquor licenses to convenience stores is "uncharted territory" for Burlington. Selectmen were concerned that other convenience stores would apply if the license was granted, which could lead to an over-abundance of locations selling alcohol. There was also concern that other convenience stores, many which are open late, would not be as easy to regulate as traditional liquor stores.

During this week's meeting Carli Convenience manager John Fuccione presented a new floor plan that separated the beer and wine from other products, easing the concern on that issue. 

The other concerns mentioned above were not specifically in regards to Fuccione or Carli Convenience, but more about whether the town wanted to grant a liquor license to a convenient store.

Selectmen Robert Hogan and Michael Runyan both said they thought that before the town granted a license to a convenient store more consideration should be given to setting up rules and regulations.

"I still have the same concerns I had two weeks ago," Hogan said. "There are a lot of questions we don’t have answers to and we haven’t had enough conversation or comments from town counsel. I’m not comfortable with what could happen if this is approved and the four other liquor licenses available go to convenience stores."

Hogan also pointed out that neighboring communities, including Billerica and Wilmington, have prohibitions on convenience stores selling alcohol.

Runyan echoed his concerns.

"Perhaps the most important role the Board of Selectmen has is to establish policy," he said. "This is new area for us. I’m not prepared to approve any licenses for this without clear guidance."

Selectman Walter Zenkin indicated during the discussion he was leaning towards approval. First he said he was happy with the new floor plan, which was a concern he raised two weeks ago. He also said he didn't see a legitimate basis to deny the application.

"When I was looking at our bylaws I saw there is nothing that says this isn’t allowed," he said. "There are currently five liquor licenses available. If the bylaws stated no liquor licenses for convenience stores that would be one thing."

Chairman of the Board Ralph Patuto expressed similar sentiments. Responding to issues raised during the discussion, such as staffing levels being lower in convenience stores than in liquor stores and concerns over the possibility that convenience stores would not be as effective as traditional liquor stores in preventing underage sales.

"First of all, as to staffing, we don't have any controls on staffing at any store," he said. "As for the lack of controls, Mass. General Law governs who can buy and sell alcohol and the enforcement is done by police departments."

Patuto also said he did not see any legitimate reason to deny the application.

"We need a reason to deny an application and I see no fair reason to deny at this particular point," he said. "I think the gentleman has done his homework. I don't see any issue with this."

The swing vote was Selectman Daniel Grattan. He said his main concern was controlling the beer and wine during hours when it cannot legally be sold.

"There is nothing new here, the rules will be same as with any other establishment, but enforcement will be more difficult," he said. "I’m concerned about enforcement in off hours since convenience stores are open in hours where no alcohol can be sold. We need to have some restrictions in place now we can use later when other applications come before us for me to support this."

Fuccione, along with his attorney Mario Patalano of Pinelli & Patalano, to lock the alcohol section during off hours. There was some discussion on how to do so but in the end it was agreed that it would be locked in a way that is compliant with the fire department and building department.

With Grattan on board the application was approved 3-2. Patuto, Zenkin and Grattan voted in favor and Runyan and Hogan voted against.

More on the debate:

During the hearing the board heard members of the community who wanted to weigh in on the application.

The board heard from three people on each side of the issue. Those in favor mostly lauded the merits and responsible nature of Fuccione and said that Carli Convenience Plus would handle the responsibilities of selling alcohol without issue.

The most adamant argument against the license came from David Norton, who identified himself as the owner of the Liquor Cabinet on Winn Street. He argued there were already sufficient places to purchase alcohol in Burlington and said there were three liquor stores within less than a mile of Carli Convenience.

"I don’t think there is a need as a resident for a beer and wine store at that location," he said. 

Norton also said the granting of the license would affect his livelihood and asked the board why the board members didn't consult with him and other liquor store owners before the hearing.

As a point of interest, if the vote was delayed to a future meeting the result would possibly have been different. 

Christopher Hartling, a candidate for one of the two contested seats for the Board of Selectmen in the April 6 election, also spoke up against granting the license. The next meeting will be held after the election and if Hartling wins a seat he would be on the board at that time.

Hartling said there are already enough places to buy alcohol in Burlington and he was concerned that if the license was granted other convenience stores would seek licenses as well. 

"If this goes forward ever convenience store along 3A will be in here looking for a license," he said. "Convenience means easy - I don’t want it to be easy to buy alcohol. There are several places to get alcohol in town, some within a minute or so of this location. I don’t think we know that this would be in the best interest of the town."

Hartling echoed Hogan and Runyan in calling for more time to consider the issue of granting a license to a convenience store.

"Before we make a decision to allow this, more work needs to be done to find out how to do it the right way or whether it should be done at all," he said.