Bill > H4769

This bill increases the number of licenses available for selling wine and malt beverages in the city of Medford from twenty-five to forty, specifically for restaurants with at least 19 seats where the beverages can be consumed on-site. These new licenses, which are subject to approval by the Alcoholic Beverages Control Commission, are designated for specific economic development areas within Medford, with a certain number allocated to West Medford, Medford Square, Hillside, South Medford, and Wellington areas, and an additional five licenses available across any of these economic development zones. Importantly, these licenses cannot be sold or transferred to another entity or location outside of these designated economic development areas; if a licensee stops using their license, it reverts to the city, which can then issue it to a new applicant within the same area. The bill also allows for special licenses under similar conditions and repeals a previous act from 2008 related to these types of licenses.