Township Makes All Six Liquor Licenses Available for Bid

While it faces a legal challenge to its restriction of alcohol sales to the Moorestown Mall, the township has decided to place all its available liquor licenses on the market and see what happens.

When the township initially drafted an ordinance for the issuance of liquor licenses earlier this year, only four were eligible for proposals. The township is allotted six based on its population (one license for every 3,000 residents), but , and since PREIT is currently the only eligible bidder, the other two were left in limbo.

Council passed unanimously Monday an amendment to the ordinance that puts all six out for proposal. The timing might seem curious to those who have been following the , who want the license availability expanded to the entire SRC (specially restricted commercial) zone.  

Mayor John Button said the reasoning behind the amendment was simple: “One thing this does is, we’re allowed to have six licenses, so let’s put six out (for proposals).”

Resident Richard Koory asked township attorney Thomas Coleman whether the township would accept—though not necessarily award—a proposal for a license from East Gate or any other properties in the SRC zone, to which Coleman responded, “In theory, yes.”

Asked whether the township expanded the number of available licenses as a backup plan in case it loses the lawsuit with East Gate, the mayor said, “We felt like it was cleaner to do it this way.”

Coleman and Button reiterated their belief that PREIT, in drafting the second referendum question, and the township, in approving it, acted responsibly. But they acknowledged the case could go either way.

“We understood what all the risks were from day one,” said Button. “PREIT understood what all the risks were. Nothing has been a surprise.”

Coleman has previously indicated the township could have faced legal action from PREIT if council had rejected the company’s referendums.

Proposals for the licenses are due July 3. Coleman said he anticipates a decision from Superior Court Judge Ronald Bookbinder in the East Gate case by the middle or end of August, “well before” any licenses would be awarded.

A Moorestown Patch poll showed a majority (77 percent) of readers would have no objection to alcohol-serving restaurants opening in East Gate, as well as the mall. (Patch polls are, of course, unscientific.)

However, Button said the “simplest, cleanest way” for the township to go forward is to .

“I don’t think it’s a bad thing to start in the way voters expected we would,” he said.