Naples Select Board approves local business licenses and authorizes vendor agreement for amphitheater tours

The Naples Select Board on June 22 approved new and renewed local business licenses and authorized the town manager to negotiate an agreement allowing a walking‑tour operator to use the amphitheater.

The board voted 4‑0 to approve the Dog on the Porch business license for 923 Roosevelt Trail Unit C and to renew Freedom Cafe's liquor license and entertainment permit. The board also approved a business license for I Be Me (branded by presenter Kelly Ann Stanley) on the condition the applicant correct the business address on the application.

The applicant, who identified her larger brand as "Lovely Kelly Ann Stanley," proposed seasonal walking tours originating at the amphitheater. She said the tours would be low impact, use a temporary A‑frame sign and run a few weekends this summer to test demand. "I'd love to start a walking tour right here in Naples," she told the board, describing longer and shorter routes that would include the cemetery and the Long Lake side.

Board members debated whether the operator needed a mobile vendor license or a separate contract with the town. The current mobile vendor language, members said, generally covers food services and special events; one board member pointed to code section 8042A as permitting agreements with the town as an alternative. The applicant told the board the town's published mobile vendor fee (which she described as presently $2,000) would be cost‑prohibitive for a small seasonal effort.

To resolve that, the board approved a motion authorizing the town manager to enter into a contract or agreement that would allow the operator to use the amphitheater and match terms to existing arrangements (for example, the town's prior summer agreements). The board also instructed the applicant to correct the license paperwork to list her Bridgton business address and to refile any vendor license forms as appropriate. "We can approve the business license as written," a board member said, "but you'll have to redo the vendor license and enter into a contract with the town manager." The motion to allow the town manager to negotiate the contract passed on a 4‑0 vote.

Votes at a glance - Dog on the Porch business license (923 Roosevelt Trail Unit C): approved 4‑0. - Freedom Cafe liquor renewal and entertainment permit: approved 4‑0. - I Be Me business license (applicant to correct business address; Bridgton address accepted): approved 4‑0. - Authorization for town manager to enter into a contract enabling amphitheater use by the operator: approved 4‑0.

The board said it will continue work through the Ordinance Review Committee on broader mobile‑vendor language and related fee structures to clarify resident/non‑resident fees, designated vendor locations and design standards. ORC is scheduled to meet July 15 to work on the ordinance and bring recommendations back to the board.