Quality Mart on Mass. Ave in the Back Bay was back before the Boston Licensing Board today, once again seeking permission to sell alcohol with its convenience foods.
The board rejected the store's bid for a liquor license in December. This time around, however, owner Aymen Rajeh said that not only would he agree to formal bans on the sale of nips, pints, half-pints and kegs, he would agree to cut back his hours, from around the clock to 6 a.m. to midnight Sunday through Wednesday and until 2 a.m. Thursday through Saturday.
Rajeh said he agreed to reduced hours because of concerns from the Neighborhood Association of the Back Bay (NABB). NABB, however, said tough luck, it's made the determination that that corner of the Back Bay doesn't need more than one liquor store and that's that.
Rajeh said his customers have been asking him for years why they can't buy a bottle of wine or something stronger to take home with their evening meals. "These people are adults that can make decisions for themselves and they've told me they want to be able to purchase alcohol at this location."
Both Mayor Tom Menino and City Councilor Mike Ross supported Rajeh's request, saying Rajeh had made extraordinary efforts to deal with neighborhood concerns. So did neighbor Martin Samuels, who said competition would force Marlboro Market to improve its own liquor offerings and maybe do something about the customers he said now routinely urinate in his walkway.
But James Hill, chairman of NABB's licensing committee, said members remained concerned about noise even with the reduced hours and that, even more important, had developed a "position of principle," that "there is insufficient need to put a liquor store in a block away from a liquor store."
Also, he raised the spectre of hordes of college students descending on the store to stock up on booze; he did not explain why that is not an issue with Marlboro Market a block away.
Rajeh noted the area is densely populated, used to have three liquor stores, that Emerson dorms long ago moved to the other side of the Common and that the one BU dorm nearby is largely populated by graduate students old enough to legally buy liquor.
Board member Michael Connolly noted Rajeh had sold a Brighton store after obtaining a liquor license and said he was concerned Rajeh was just seeking a license so he could sell off the store at the higher profit that would come with a liquor license.
Rajeh said he hadn't even thought of that until Connolly raised the issue. He said he sold his Brighton store - and another market downtown - because he'd gotten to the point where he needed to spend more time with his family. He said he's owned his Back Bay location for 20 years and has no intention of selling.
Hill said 11 nearby residents submitted letters to NABB opposing the liquor license. Rajeh submitted signatures of 300 customers in favor.
The licensing board votes tomorrow on Rajeh's application.
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