Licensing Board

Minutes of the Licensing Board Meeting Held Weds., Dec. 18, 2024 – p. 2 Minutes of the Licensing Board Meeting Tuesday, December 18, 2024 140 Main St, Council Committee Room, 1st floor Attending: Greg Mitrakas, Chairman, David Bouvier, Member, Mary Jo Nawrocki, Member (absent); Tina Nolin, Clerk The meeting was called to order by Chairman Mitrakas at 6:30 pm New Business 1. Change of Manager Application – Fraternal Order of Eagles LLC, 56 Florence St., Randy Shelton, proposed manager. Randy Shelton was present at the meeting to present the application. Member Bouvier motioned to approve the application, Chair Mitrakas seconded the motion. The motion passed with a 2-0 vote. 2. Application for new off-premises license wine & malt license, Brothers Market Company Inc., 116 Broad St., Keri De Almeida, Manager The Public Hearing was opened at 6:34 pm Keri De Almeida was present to present the application. She explained that they had been in business in Marlborough for almost 15 years. Over that time customers who have been with us for most of that time have been asking us to carry a selection of Wines and Beers and feel that now that they have the space, clientele, and resources they want to add that to the business offerings. Their clientele is predominantly Brazilian and Spanish, so they are looking to offer those types of wines and beers, rather than traditional American brands. Additionally, Adeildo De Almeida, co-owner of the establishment, spoke out in favor of the license. Those in opposition to the license were Anthony Speranzella, owner of Sperry’s Liquors, located at 529 Lincoln St. (almost across the street from Brothers Market). He explained that his store already offers similar products to those Brothers Market hopes to offer and he has significant numbers of customers buying them as they have been cultivating that market for several years now, so placing the license in that location would not benefit the area. Chairman Mitrakas told the applicants that he had been in the store recently and liked what they were doing and how well they kept their shop and the items available. However, he further explained that the city has only one license left and that for many years now they have put it aside for economic development, meaning they are looking to put it in a location where a newly placed license would spur economic growth. He further noted that this would be a newly issued license at no cost to the applicant as opposed to a  Minutes of the Licensing Board Meeting Held Weds., Dec. 18, 2024 – p. 2 transfer of an existing license which, if issued, would likely only benefit a very narrow segment of the Marlborough population as opposed to benefitting the city as a whole. Member Bouvier agreed with Chairman Mitrakas, especially with Sperry’s Liquors so close by, and because the Board has marked the license for use to encourage economic development in an underutilized or developing area of the city. Member Bouvier motioned to deny the license, Chair Mitrakas seconded the motion, and the vote was 2-0 to deny the license. 3. Reports from the Chairman Chairman Mitrakas reported that he is still waiting to hear from the City Solicitor, Jason Grossfield, regarding the outside seating and he report to the Board once he heard from him. 4. Misc. Correspondence and Open Issues – there were no miscellaneous correspondence or open issues. 5. Review of minutes from November 26, 2024, regular meeting minutes Member Bouvier motioned to accept and place on file the minutes of the November 26, 2024, meeting, Chairman Mitrakas seconded the motion. The motion passed 2-0. The next meeting of the Licensing Board will be on Wednesday, January 29th, 2025, at 6:30 p.m. Member Bouvier motioned to adjourn the meeting at 6:49 pm, Chair Mitrakas seconded the motion, and the vote was 2-0 to adjourn. Respectfully submitted, Date Signed: 1/29/2025 Greg Mitrakas, Chairman