While it’s not always the best idea to start drinking alcohol at 8 a.m., Riverside officials see no problem with residents buying it then.
At their Nov. 7 board meeting, village trustees approved an ordinance allowing alcohol to be sold in town starting at 8 a.m. each day. Previously, businesses could sell liquor starting at 9 a.m. on weekdays and noon on the weekends; they will still have to stop selling alcohol at 11 p.m. each day.
The village board approved the ordinance as part of its consent agenda, meaning trustees did not discuss it individually. Village President Douglas Pollock explained the change was set in motion by Peter Boutsikakis, the owner of Riverside’s only grocery store, Riverside Foods at 48 E. Burlington St.
“For as long as I’ve had Riverside Foods, there’s always been some restrictions in the morning, in particular Sunday mornings,” Boutsikakis said in a phone interview. “We always wanted to ask the village to get rid of that restriction in the past, but really, this year, when football started back up, I saw my customers Sunday mornings looking to get beer, wine and alcohol to host parties, and they were unable to do so. We were definitely missing out on sales, and we were definitely pushing some people out of town in the morning.”
Boutsikakis said another factor that pushed him to make the request was seeing Riverside move in March to allow cannabis dispensaries in town, namely Star Buds, to open at 8 a.m.
“It definitely was a thought for sure, and we mentioned that to President Pollock, but the main drive was to not prevent people Sunday morning from shopping for hosting parties at their house,” he said.
According to documents from the meeting, Riverside has not received any calls for police or reports of traffic concern related to Star Buds’ opening hour since making the change for dispensaries.
Boutsikakis said he’s already seen the effects of the change, mostly on Sundays.
“I can’t say [I’ve seen] a significant impact, especially since this just started, but I’ve certainly seen at least a handful of customers take advantage,” he said.
The ordinance targets businesses that possess a Class A or Class A-1 liquor license, of which there are three in town, according to meeting documents: the Quik Mart by the Shell gas station near Longcommon Avenue and Harlem Avenue, the RMarts store by the ARCO gas station at 3346 S. Harlem Rd., and Riverside Foods. All three hold an A-1 license, which permits them to sell sealed liquor for off-site consumption.
Pollock said he made note of the item at the meeting due to the speed with which Riverside had processed the request.
“I brought that to the board. The board reacted. Staff immediately processed the paperwork, and we’re here really quickly,” he said. “The reason I bring attention to this is [because] I want the business community and everyone to know that, if you have issues, concerns, or anything, all you need to do is let one of us know.”
