PEABODY — With its three-month special-license suspension set to expire June 14, the Albanian Boston Community Inc. club at 26 Howley St. plans to reopen next week.
The City Council voted unanimously to approve the club’s permit reinstatement at a show-cause hearing Thursday night, after the club was caught serving alcohol in violation of its permit earlier this year.
The club’s attorney, John Keilty, said the cultural club has remained in compliance with the conditions of its license suspension — remaining closed, paying a $200 fine, and reorganizing its board of directors —since it went into effect.
“It is our intention to remain closed until the appropriate date, which I believe is the 14th of June, at which time we will open, offer our cultural opportunities and the opportunity to gather. However, there is a prohibition on alcohol. We understand that we must live by that rule,” Keilty said.
The council granted a special permit to the club on Jan. 27, 2022 “to operate a community, cultural, and recreational center as a not-for-profit corporation” on the condition that there would be no sale or consumption of alcohol on the premises.
During a Feb. 23 show-cause hearing, Police Lt. David Bonfanti told the council that Councilor at-Large Tom Gould called the police on Dec. 27, 2022 and said he was “concerned” that there was drinking and gambling at the club.
Bonfanti said an on-site investigation conducted by the Alcoholic Beverages Control Commission found a male with a bottle of Bud Light and empty boxes of Heineken beer bottles. They also observed alcohol “in plain view” in a bar refrigerator and receipts for “premium” beverages.
The club filed an unsuccessful appeal of the suspension in Essex County Superior Court on March 17, seeking to overturn the suspension on the grounds that neither state law nor the city’s zoning ordinance empower the council “to revoke or suspend a special permit once the same has been issued” and that “no provision of the special permit under review provided that the permit could be suspended or revoked for a violation of any of its terms or conditions.”
The complaint also alleged that the three-month suspension existentially threatened the club’s “business, and thus threatens them with immediate and irreparable harm.”
Ward 3 Councilor Stephanie Peach said Thursday night that she was “satisfied” with the club’s reopening plan, and wished the club well. She added that she believes the club’s size and location do not make alcohol sale or service appropriate.
Peach said she wanted to remind the club that it is not permitted to serve alcohol, and that it must have one board member present while it conducts its business.
“I understand that there is a desire from the club at some point to grow into a club that can have alcohol and alcohol sales such as other social clubs in the area,” Peach said. “At this time I’m not in favor of amending the special permit in any way and I just want to reiterate that there’s no sale of alcohol or alcohol allowed on the premises.”
Before the vote, Ward 2 Councilor Peter McGinn requested that the permit reinstatement be approved on the condition that the club send a written statement to the city acknowledging that it may not serve alcohol.
Peach said she agreed with McGinn’s request, and the motion passed under the condition of a written letter.
“I know nothing else is going to happen, but just in case, we know who to call,” she said.
