SWAMPSCOTT — With the Swampscott by the Sea Concert series scheduled to begin July 12, members of the Select Board are debating whether to allow wine and beer sales on the Town Hall lawn.
The Select Board voted 3-2 Monday night to grant Granite Coast Brewery a temporary liquor license for the July 12 concert on the lawn, but held off on granting the Peabody-based brewery’s liquor-license application for a July 19 concert until after board members agree on a policy for alcohol sales on public property.
Granite Coast’s license application prompted discussion on the presence of alcohol at town events. Select Board member MaryEllen Fletcher, who voted against the one-day license, said she received calls from members of the community about the frequency with which wine and beer were present at town events. Fletcher also expressed concern that beer sales on Town Hall’s lawn would deter patrons from going to nearby restaurants.
“I get a number of phone calls about the amount of beer gardens and beer parties that we’re having and why do we have to have so many parties?” Fletcher said. “It’s taking away from our family atmosphere, those are the comments that I get.”
Select Board Chair David Grishman responded to Fletcher’s concerns, adding that the increased foot traffic brought by beer sales would benefit businesses throughout downtown Swampscott. He said that the Wednesday night concerts would not be centered around alcohol, but around community.
“This is something that we’re just trying out as a town to build community, to get more people to Town Hall to listen to music and to build community through this. It’s a Wednesday, I don’t know how many people are going to be crushing a ton of beers on a Wednesday night,” Grishman said.
Select Board member Katie Phelan also voted against the license, arguing that alcohol at town events might send a negative message to young people and residents in addiction recovery.
“I think it’s an important message that was send to our youth that we don’t have to have alcohol at every function to have fun, and that we could have a good time and enjoy music and we don’t have to have a beer in our hand,” Phelan said.
Select Board member Peter Spellios addressed Phelan’s concern about fostering a comfortable environment for those with substance-abuse issues, but responded that alcohol is not present at the vast majority of town events. When it is sold, he said, it is never the focus.
“Us having six events a year where we have alcohol is not us having beer at every event. The [Recreation] Department plans dozens and dozens and dozens and dozens of events,” Spellios said. “At Strawberry Fest, there was a beer truck and there were about 12 to 18 food trucks and other things… It was wonderfully not beer-centric. It was actually music-centric, it was food-centric, it was everybody being wet from getting in a thunderstorm-centric.”
The board voted to approve Granite Coast Brewery’s July 12 license. They will discuss a potential July 19 license, along with the town’s policy on approving future one-day liquor licenses, at the next Select Board meeting July 5.
“The best thing we can do for the small businesses is to bring more foot traffic, because when you’re having a wonderful time on the lawn at Town Hall, that doesn’t have to end at when the music stops,” Town Administrator Sean Fitzgerald said. “I’ve heard many times, especially with the fireworks, people come down and then that entire quarter will be busy because we bring community and we bring music and art and culture.”
