Once in a great while, my dark, cold, hard heart is warmed. And last night's Alcohol Beverage Hearing Board meeting was one of those occasions. For the board voted unanimously to reject the petition for a license to operate a liquor store on the Wegman's property. Lindsey McPherson brings you all the civic goodness in this article.
I attended this hearing for a little bit last night-- enough to hear the first cross-examining attorney question proposed store owner (and husband of the president of Wegman's) Christopher O'Donnell, who, I gotta admit, answered the questions more in the way I would expect of former Delaware US Senate candidate Christine O'Donnell, plus 85 IQ points. Of course, no, absolutely, were in any way shape for form the liquor store and the Wegman's the same entity.
But this is what I get for not staying around until 10pm or so, when the hearing ended. More cross-examination and commentary from the board members about the same issues I have mentioned previously. Such as, the fact that the proposed store and Wegman's are in the same building. They're not next door, not in the same strip mall, they are in the same blinking building. And especially interesting is the fact that there was only one person to testify at the hearing last night in support of the proposed store? Really? Said potential proprietor, Mr. O'Donnell, and his cast of thousands didn't scour the county looking for sympathetic voices? Or at least, distribute flyers in front of the store.
Well, the county's existing liquor stores certainly did their homework. They were out in force.
So what's next for the proposed liquor store, that's not really part of Wegman's, but in a way, kinda, sorta is???
I am sure this is not the end. That space isn't going to be re-purposed into a 10,000 square-foot ice cream and soda pop store. (BUT WHAT IF IT WAS????)
My guess is that there will be some store renovations which will wall off the Wegman's cafe from the liquor store site, some roundiong up of community support, and then a resubmission of the license. That space is too valuable and the potential business too lucrative to allow for nothing to happen for very long.
