Politics & Government

Outdoor Seating, Alcohol Pitcher and Deals Reminder for Braintree Businesses

The License Board on Tuesday also held a hearing on the Knights of Columbus all-alcohol license. Tune in to Patch for more on that and other stories.

Businesses in Braintree licensed to sell alcohol and serve food will soon receive a letter from town officials reminding them of local and state regulations surrounding the sale of beer pitchers, discounted alcohol and outdoor seating.

Joe Powers, chair of the Board of License Commissioners, said on Tuesday afternoon that the notice will go out following several instances of improper activity by local establishments.

He would not specifiy which businesses were involved, but said at least two were serving pitchers of alcohol despite Braintree regulations forbidding it, and that others had placed seats and tables outdoors without going through the proper procedures. Also, in at least one location, buckets of beer featuring price deals have been sold, which is not allowed under Massachusetts law because it is a form of alcohol discounting, Powers said.

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Some of the town's chain restaurants – which are allowed to sell beer pitchers outside of Braintree – asked Powers if they could meet to discuss that local regulation, he said, and so the item will be placed on the agenda for the July 24 meeting of the board.

The Braintree-specific regulations outlawing beer pitchers and happy hours took effect in 1984, according to an Associated Press report from that year. Braintree followed Framingham, which was the first Massachusetts town to forbid happy hours in 1982.

Find out what's happening in Braintreewith free, real-time updates from Patch.

The change occurred after a Weymouth woman was killed in an alcohol-related car accident. The AP reported that the driver had been served three free mugs of beer that night at the Ground Round and pleaded guilty to vehicular manslaughter.

Last fall, state senators Robert Hedlund, R-Weymouth, and James Timilty, D-Walpole, set off a heated discussion in Massachusetts about reinstating happy hours as part of the plan to bring casinos to the state. They later adjusted their proposal to include a year-long review of discounted alcohol by the Alcoholic Beverages Control Commission, according to the Patriot Ledger.

The information about the letter was provided at the end of a license board meeting that also involved members hitting the Knights of Columbus with a suspended sentence over an alcohol-related incident last month. They also approved food and flammable storage licenses for two separate businesses. More on those stories this week. 

Correction: The establishments found to have been serving pitchers were serving an alcoholic beverage, not beer.


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