Three liquor store owners in Chestertown protested the liquor license application of John Thompson, owner of College Heights Barbershop and also the landlord of the former C-Town Liquors and Deli location on Washington Avenue.
Thompson plans to open the location as J.J.’s Deli & Liquors.
C-Town Liquors moved roughly 50 yards up the street and apparently doesn’t want any competition setting up in their old location.
C-Town Liquors owner, Jeremy Caponi-Graux, said the there was one liquor store for every 321 people in Kent County and that added competition would hurt the large investment he’s made to move up the street. He said that he’s heavily invested in the new location.
“It will greatly affect the license that I hold at 601 Washington Ave,” Caponi-Graux said. “The economy isn’t great, we’re in a stagnant economy at best.”
“There’s a lot of us,” Caponi-Graux said. “We’re competing for business and we’re just trying to make ends meet [and] we have just enough business to keep the doors open and the lights on. We add one more [store] to the list and someone is going to go out of business.”
Rob Connell of Pips Liquors agreed with Caponi-Graux that the market has too many liquor stores.
“What we’re looking at is a situation where this county is very saturated with liquor stores,” Connell said. “Of the ten Class A licenses in this county, five of them are in this town.”
Sunnil Datta, Super Soda Center echoed Pips and C-Town that Chestertown had too many liquor stores.
Kent Commissioner Ron Fithian said he agreed that a discussion could be had about the number of liquor stores in Kent but said the conversation shouldn’t start with denying someone a license.
“There may be some room for us in the future for the liquor establishment to come up with some safeguards,” Fithian said. “But I don’t think the next guy’s license is the time to do it. I think it ought to be done early on where everybody in the county has a chance to weigh in.”
The Commissioner voted unanimously to approve Thompson’s license.
In other news from the liquor board hearing, Play it Again Sam’s was granted a new license and is now serving beer and wine.
Owner Pete Brocker said the first Friday in September was going to be a “hell-of-a-party” for his customers.
Pete Brocker says
Haircut and a Forty!!
Mark Andrews says
Pete, the pedestrians who walk the streets of Chestertown would appreciate it if you would limit your use of the sidewalk to a reasonable amount (the amount allowed in the code), allowing for elderly, families with children and people walking dogs to pass by your establishment without obstruction from your signboard, flags, plants and the rude individuals who decide to move their chairs into the path of pedestrian traffic. I, for one, will never shop at your establishment.
Pete Brocker says
Mark I’m very sorry you feel this way .sometimes my employees tilt the sign in a way that it blocks the sidewalk. Maybe if you would have come in and talked to about this matter it could have been solved then and there. As for my customers, if they choose to move chairs i can only police the situation as much as I can. I apologize for that, I’m just trying to run a business In a town that has not fully recovered from a bad economy, I have had that sign and plants out for 8 long years and this is the first time someone found it offensive. It bothers me that you found this forum appropriate to voice your grievances, I hope that perhaps if you continue to have an issue we can resolve it in person.
Best regards,
Pete
joe diamond says
Now comes the creative part,
The new J.J.s is near the college and has an off sale license. There is good parking for a clientele that comes and goes pretty quickly. The location is astride a pretty vigorous through town traffic pattern. Two major employers, the hospital and Dixon Valve, have a flow of employees past the door twice a day with others going in the other direction.
What to offer that is not a cheap thirty pak of beer?????
Joe
Gerry Levin says
I think everyone has a right to open up a business. Just because there’s another same-type business in the area? It’s called “competition”. I wish the best for everyone!
Ron Moore says
I don’t know why he (C-Town Liquors) didn’t pay off the landlord to keep a liquor store out of there for a year. Whoever opened J&J’s made a really sharp business decision. Beer pong balls, giant, cheap cases of Natural Light, and late night hoagies will net him a fortune. Now, If they offered beer and hoagie delivery…