Council Concerned With Possible State-Issued Liquor License in Moorestown

In 2011, Moorestown residents made it clear they wanted alcohol to be served in the township.

With a 50 percent turnout, voters showed they wanted alcohol to be served in the township for the first time since the early part of the 20th century.

That approval limited the distribution of alcohol to the Moorestown Mall.

However, it now appears a statute put in place by the State of New Jersey may override the local ordinance and allow the Wine Room of Cherry Hill Vineyards to offer wine samples for on site consumption at Al Dente Italiana on Nixon Drive under a state statute.

It would also allow for the sale of package goods, which the Township’s ordinance expressly prohibits, Deputy Mayor Stacey Jordan said during Township Council’s meeting at the high school.

The statute essentially overrides every aspect of the local ordinance with the exception of the legal hours of sale established by the township.

The Division of Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC) will make the final determination, but requested the township submit any relevant information or written comments about the topic within 14 days of receiving the letter. The letter was dated March 28.

Jordan expressed concern that this could pave the way for businesses to bypass the local ordinance and begin serving alcohol under the state statute. Mayor Chris Chiaccio questioned how every aspect of the ordinance but one can be superseded by state statute.

The Additional Retail Privilege allows wineries to sell wine on premises.

“The statute is intended to help wineries and it’s a great idea on the surface, but they don’t understand the wide reaching effect this can have, especially on a town like ours,” Jordan said.

If the ABC approves the Wine Room’s application for the license, it would still be held accountable for anyone who leaves their establishment impaired as a result of alcohol consumption.

The full text of the letter the township received from the ABC reads as follows:

The Division of Alcoholic Beverage Control recently received an application for a new Additional Retail Privilege filed by Wine Room of Cherry Hill Vineyards, Inc. d/b/a Coda Rossa. The applicant is a winery licensee presently authorized to produce wines at a winery located in Franklin Township, New Jersey. The application requests that this new Additional Retail Privilege be sited at Al Dente Italiana, 1690 Nixon Drive, Moorestown, New Jersey, 08057.

The license, issued pursuant to N.J.S.A. 33:1-10.2(a) would authorize Wine Room of Cherry Hill Vineyards d/b/a Coda Rossa to offer samples for on premises consumption and to sell their products in original packages at retail to consumers for on or off premises consumption. For the purpose of this regulation, sampling means the selling at a nominal charge or the gratuitous offering of an open container not exceeding one and one-half ounces on any wine.

The licensee’s hours of operation would be restricted to the legal hours of sale established by the Township of Moorestown ordinance.

I am providing you with this notification to ensure your awareness of this request for a State issued license to operate within the municipal limits of Moorestown Township. Please provide the Division with any relevant written comments or observations within 14 days from the date of this letter."