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2026 Annual Town Meeting, Town of Arlington, MA
Article: 28
Warrant Article Title:
HOME RULE LEGISLATION / ADDITIONAL ON PREMISES ALL
ALCOHOL LICENSES
Warrant Article Text:
To see if the Town will vote to authorize the Select Board to file
Home Rule Legislation that would grant the Town additional
licenses for the sale of all alcoholic beverages to be drunk on the
premises pursuant to Section 12 of Chapter 138 of the General
Laws; or take any action related thereto.
Requested By:
the Select Board
Report Excerpt:
Vote and comment to Town Meeting - Favorable Action (4-0)
Mr. Helmuth recused himself.
The Board voted unanimously to recommend favorable action on
this article, which seeks authorization to file home rule legislation
that would grant the town ten additional licenses for the sale of all
alcoholic beverages to be drunk on the premises pursuant to G.L.
c. 138, §12, increasing the total number of licenses from twenty to
thirty.
Although the Select Board acts as the town’s local licensing
authority for the sale of alcoholic beverages, changes to the
number of available licenses requires legislative approval. From
the initial issuance of all alcohol licenses in 2005, the Town has
filed special legislation for a set number of licenses that is below
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the default number of fifty otherwise allowed under state law
based on the Town’s population.
Of the twenty available licenses, the Town has issued sixteen,
with applications for two additional licenses currently pending
before the Board. Going forward, it is expected there will be
additional demand for all alcohol licenses since the Board recently
reduced from fifty to twenty the minimum seating capacity for
premises that seek all alcohol licenses. It is the Board’s hope that
the increase in the number of licenses will allow for further growth
in the number of restaurants in Town while also avoiding the
creation of a secondary market for licenses once all of the current
licenses have been issued.
Consistent with the Board’s prior practice to seek Town Meeting
approval to file home rule legislation that would permit the Board
to place the question of whether to increase the number of
licenses on the ballot for a town wide vote. If approved and
passed by the state legislature, it is expected that this matter
would be on the ballot for the town’s 2027 Annual Town Election.
NOTE: the vote language has been corrected to match the Select
Board Report. In Section 2 the original annotated warrant had
text regarding increasing the number of licenses by five.
Vote Language:
That the Town does hereby request and authorize the Select
Board to file Home Rule Legislation to provide substantially as
follows:
“AN ACT TO INCREASE THE NUMBER OF ALL-ALCOHOL
LICENSES FOR RESTAURANTS IN THE TOWN OF
ARLINGTON
Section 1. Notwithstanding any general or special law to the
contrary including without limitation Sections 11A and 17 of
Chapter 138 of the General Laws and Chapter 398 of the Acts
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and Resolves of 2014, the Select Board in the Town of Arlington
shall cause to be placed upon the official ballot used in the Town
of Arlington at its annual Town Meeting to be held in the year
2027 the following question: ‘Shall the Select Board be authorized
to grant an additional ten licenses for a total of thirty for the sale
therein of all-alcoholic beverages by restaurants and function
rooms having a seating capacity of not less than twenty persons?’
Yes ☐ No ☐
Section 2. If a majority of the votes cast in said Town in answer to
said question is in the affirmative, said Town shall be taken to
have increased from twenty to thirty the number of licenses in the
Town of all-alcoholic beverages to be drunk on the premises of
restaurants and function rooms having a seating capacity of not
less than twenty persons. Said thirty licenses shall be subject
however, to all the other provisions of said Chapter 138, except
those that provide for a limitation as to the number of licenses
permitted or the wording of the question posed to the voters.
Section 3. This Act shall take effect upon its passage.”
Select Board Report
