SOMERSET, Mass. -- Massachusetts residents will be asked in November to vote on a measure that could give grocery stores, convenience stores and even gas stations the chance to sell wine, reported the Providence (R.I.) Journal.
Proponents said approval would be a boon to consumers, who will find it easier to pick up their favorite wine. It would ultimately be up to each city or town to actually license individual stores, said the report.
But opponents, led by local liquor establishments, are warning that the change would likely [image-nocss] increase teenage access to alcohol, make it far more difficult to enforce liquor laws and be the first step toward doubling the number of stores that can also sell beer and hard liquor.
Two area package store owners and the executive director of the Massachusetts Package Stores Association appeared at a recent Board of Selectmen's meeting to warn officials about Question 1, predicting that it would be the subject of a huge media campaign to get it ratified.
If it is passed, we will literally have alcohol available on every street corner, Christopher Gasbarro, who owns stores in Seekonk and Swansea, told the newspaper.
The ballot question would allow each city and town to issue at least five such licenses, with an additional license for every 5,000 residents, the report said.
We're looking at more than doubling the number of licenses out there, Frank Anzalotti, a package store association official, told the paper.
Some officials were wary of the referendum. I think once we lose control and we have so many places where it's available, it's no longer a convenience, it's a nuisance, Selectwoman Eleanor Gagnon told the Providence Journal.
It doubles the places where we would have to seek enforcement, said Police Chief Joseph Ferreira. Obviously, the more places you have, the greater the burden.
The ballot question provides for no additional resources to help the police keep tabs on the additional liquor establishments in town, said the report.
Scott Smith of Indian Springs Liquors said studies have repeatedly shown that when grocery and c-stores are allowed to sell liquor, it becomes easier for those under 21 to get their hands on it. Such stores, for example, routinely hire workers under 18, who would be under tremendous peer pressure to sell to their friends, he contended.
Anzalotti said in a recent study done in Hawaii, 15% of the package stores were found to have sold to minors. The rate was 22% for grocery stores and 53% for c-stores, he claimed.
Smith predicted that approval of Question 1 would be a boon to liquor advertisers hoping to market their brands to youngsters. You'll be subjecting young children to this type of potential display advertising next to the candy or the soda. There are no rules and regulations on it, he said.
Proponents will stress convenience. But weigh all the public safety and cost factors into what that convenience will be, he said.
Adding to the reluctance of a grocery or c-store to enforce the liquor laws is the fact that such businesses risk less if they sell to children, claimed Gasborro. If a local package store is disciplined for an underage sale, he said, the cost to that business can be crippling. But for a convenience or grocery store, many of which are owned by large chains, the only consequence will probably be closing off one aisle for a while, he said.
Don't think we're safe with kids because it's only wine, warned Anzalotti. If it's there and accessible, they'll drink it. And although the ballot question only talks about selling wine, you can bank on the fact that the major brewers will be coming out next and declaring foul so beer can be sold the same way, he said.
Gasbarro said some grocery stories have tried to address some of the criticisms by promising to have just one checkout line dedicated to liquor sales. But the latest trick some teens are using, Gasbarro told the paper, is to remove soda cans from a case, substitute beer, and then take their purchase through the automated scanner.
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