It’s been more than a year since a local convenience store received a liquor license from the board of selectmen. When the White Hen Pantry on Lincoln Avenue was granted the license to sell beer and wine, the action sparked debate and public outcry from residents. Citizens felt that type of establishment, frequented by children, should not be allowed to sell any type of alcohol.

Appearing at a public hearing before the Board of Selectmen on Tuesday night, Donna McNeil and Ellen Faiella of Saugus Speaks Out asked the board of selectmen to approve a new bylaw that would prohibit any type of store that sells up to 80% of non-alcohol related products from obtaining a liquor license.

In the town of Saugus, Saugus Speaks Out (SSO) is a non-profit organization which aims to educate parents and children about the dangers of drug and alcohol abuse.

McNeil, the vice-chairman of SSO, told the board of select-men and town manager that convenience stores and similar “milk-and-bread” establishments are frequent-ed by children and should not be allowed to sell alcohol. SSO’s proposal would create a guideline of 80% non-alcohol products sold by any convenience or mom-and-pop store. A special exemption would be instituted for restaurants, establishments where alcohol would be consumed on its premises, and liquor stores and vendors.

Board of Selectmen member Peter Rossetti, Jr. asked Mrs. McNeil why the town needs a new bylaw when there are already laws that protect citizens and effectively governing the issue of alcohol licenses.

McNeil stated that even with the laws already in effect in Saugus, a convenience store was granted a beer and wine license and most residents were not aware of the store owners’ application for that license.

“I want to ensure this does not happen again,” McNeil said.

Selectman Mike Kelleher explained that convenience stores have one of the highest theft rates. The difficulty a store would have of trying to prevent shop-lifting in addition to
preventing the sale of alcohol to minors should be cause for concern and prevent those establishments from selling alcohol.

Selectman Steve Castinetti told the board he wants to make sure the language of the bylaw is correct and asked that anything voted on by the board should be looked over by Town Council John Vasapoli. “I whole-heartedly agree with what Donna (McNeil) and Ellen (Faiella) are proposing,” he said.

Faiella, Chairman for Saugus Speaks Out, told the board that the Alcoholic Beverage Control Commission (ABCC) thought any language in the new bylaw must be reviewed and approved by town council.

Faiella also told the board that more than 500 signatures have been collected and she and McNeil felt the people of Saugus do not want beer and wine sold in convenience stores or super-markets. “The voices of our town’s people want to be heard. The voices of these petitioners and many more want this new bylaw,” Faiella stressed.

At the beginning of the hearing, McNeil presented the petition supporting a new bylaw to restrict beer and wine sales in any so-called convenience store.

Diane Serino, the former head of the Health and Wellness Education Department at Saugus High School, told the Board of Selectmen that recent studies have shown a large increase in teenage and preteenage use of drugs and alcohol. Alcohol is the drug of choice for many teenagers Serino said. “We need to make alcohol harder to obtain, not easier and more accessible,” she said.

“We need to close all the gaps in how alcohol licenses are issued,” said Selectman Kelleher.

Lt. Sweezey of the Saugus Police Department said that alcohol is too easy to get for some children and that there needs to be better control by the town on who sells and where it is.

Kelleher and colleague Selectman Steve Horlick both offered motions that the potential bylaw should be reviewed and approved by town council and the board and town meeting will subsequently act upon the new law.