November 29, 2006 GAC Update
The Council held a Round Table meeting on Monday to discuss the City’s Liquor License Cap policy. Tuesday’s luncheon with U.S. Representative Michael Capuano was cancelled because the Congressman was called to Washington for a meeting with incoming Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi. This event will be rescheduled in 2007.
GAC members are reminded that we are looking for volunteers to join a number of sub-committees proposed at the September 26th GAC meeting. To volunteer or for more information please e-mail Terrence Smith, Director of Government Affairs at tsmith@cambridgechamber.org or phone (617) 876-4213.
Upcoming GAC Events
The 2006 Government Affairs program is sponsored by Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research.
Vice Mayor and State Representative Toomey Guest at January GAC
Cambridge Vice Mayor and State Representative Timothy Toomey, Jr. will address the January GAC meeting and luncheon on Tuesday, January 23, 2007 at noon in the Chamber of Commerce Board Room. Vice Mayor Toomey was first elected to the City Council in 1989 and to the State Legislature in 1992. He is in his first term as Vice Mayor. Prior to his election to the Council he served two terms on the Cambridge School Committee. Please e-mail tsmith@cambridgechamber.org or phone (617) 876-4213 if you plan to attend.
November 27, 2006 City Council Round Table
The Council met on Monday in a Round Table meeting to discuss the City of Cambridge’s Liquor License Cap policy. Cambridge is permitted under special legislation enacted in the early 1980s to grant licenses for liquor and beer and wine. Most communities are limited by state law to a set number of licenses based on population. Since the 1980s Cambridge has limited (capped) the number of liquor and beer and wine licenses available in what are now 15 districts. The cost to purchase a license from an existing license holder has become a concern for some members of the Council as is the method which new licenses are created.
The meeting included a discussion of the Cap policy by License Commissioner Richard Scali and comments and questions from the Council. Mayor Reeves stated that he is concerned about the few places open for dining after 10:00 in Cambridge and questioned the logic of some places being permitted to be open until a later hour than others. He also called for more nightclubs in the City.
Councilors expressed concern about the difficulty and expense of purchasing an existing license. It was reported that a beer and wine license recently sold for $250,000 in Harvard Square. This cost is viewed as a major detriment to new restaurants coming into the Square and possibly other parts of the City. Several Councilors noted that licensed establishments are a part of an overall economic development strategy and the License Commission should be a part of that discussion.
This issue was previously discussed at a hearing of the City Council’s Economic Development, Training and Employment Committee. A copy of the Committee Report is available at October 25, 2006 Committee Report.
