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Cumbies puts off beer/wine ballot bid until 2022, blames coronavirus
By adamg on Sat, 06/27/2020 - 10:28am
Massachusetts Beverage Business reports Cumberland Farms has abandoned its plans for a ballot question this fall that asks voters to let it install beer and wine coolers in all its stores because it's just too darned busy concentrating on protecting its workers and customers from Covid-19.
Last month, the Supreme Judicial Court ruled, on a suit brought by the state's packies, that the Cumbies ballot question, which would strike the current state limit on how many beer-and-wine licenses one company can own, was perfectly fine for voters to consider.
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Comments
Victory for neighborhood
Victory for neighborhood indie shops!
Loss for everyone else
Why not look at the many other states that allow this - for instance, I just recently moved from Boston to the far-flung reaches of Vermont, and I can assure you that despite every single gas station being able to sell beer/wine here, there’s still plenty of small independent liquor stores. I don’t see why it would be any different in Massachusetts.
(Funnily enough, the gas station near me currently actually has a better beer selection than the indie shop in town, so I can actually say I’d be directly worse off without this being the case.)
I happily support local
I happily support local neighborhood establishments. Sorry for you.
Good
Massachusetts' liquor laws are screwed up but the inability to buy booze at most gas stations isn't a problem. If the citizens wanted this ability they would have voted for it a few years ago.
Towns that are not Boston can already issue as many packie licenses as they want to independent retailers. It's only the chain stores (and Boston) which are limited under the current laws.
The two biggest problems are the distribution to liquor stores which allows a few companies to hold brewers hostage and the cap on Boston's (and only Boston's) consumption licenses.
I approve
For once the mom and pops get a break.