SWAMPSCOTT — The Select Board discussed the possibility of distributing “Bring Your Own Bottle,” or BYOB liquor licenses to local businesses at its regular meeting Wednesday.
Select Board members appeared to support the idea although they decided to table their vote to approve it until their next meeting so that they could determine the licenses’ official language. The licenses will permit local restaurants to allow customers to bring their own wine and beer to the establishments so long as they are consumed with food.
Establishments that will qualify for the license must be full-service commercial food enterprises that previously received a common victualler’s license from the town. “Full service” in this context, will mean the establishment must have a full wait staff and eat-in dining services for its patrons, according to a presentation from Swampscott Police Department executive assistant Angelica Noble.
“We had a business that came forward to ask if we could offer BYOB, and we found out that we did not have a policy,” Noble said. “So I looked at Marblehead’s, Winthrop’s, and Boston’s, and we decided what would be most beneficial for Swampscott.”
The new BYOB licenses will be active for one year and will run recipients $400, according to Select Board members’ conversation Wednesday. As is the case with other licenses the town administers, Select Board members will have the opportunity to adjust that price tag in the future to ensure it is in line with the market.
BYOB licenses will require alcoholic beverages to be unopened when a patron enters an establishment. License language will also mandate that recipient establishments train all managers and staff that serve patrons “in the correct procedures pertaining to this Policy.”
Finally, patrons will be allowed to carry alcoholic beverages only for personal consumption. Patrons may carry in no more than 750 milliliters of wine and 36 ounces of beer per patron 21 years of age or older, according to Noble’s presentation.
“If there are small businesses that can get started and use this BYOB as a way to venture into a business that is challenging, this makes a lot of sense having this as part of our regulatory offerings,” Town Administrator Sean Fitzgerald said.
Fitzgerald also noted that the town currently has several other liquor licenses available. They include four all-alcohol licenses, four wine, and malt licenses, and six special legislation liquor licenses.
“We really want businesses to come and ask to have one of these licenses,” Fitzgerald said.
