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Select Board renews Sea Coast Shores liquor licenses after heated neighborhood dispute
Summary
After extended testimony from neighbors and the applicant, the Falmouth Select Board voted to renew seasonal club and alcohol licenses for Sea Coast Shores Association, while opponents raised concerns about deed restrictions, restricted public access and equity. Town counsel advised the board its renewal authority is limited; the ABCC retains appellate jurisdiction.
The Falmouth Select Board voted April 13 to renew Sea Coast Shores Association’s seasonal club and related alcohol and entertainment licenses after a contested hearing that drew both longstanding supporters and a group calling itself Friends of Sea Coast Shores.
Town Counsel Mara O’Keefe laid out the procedural limits the board faced: renewals for seasonal licenses are generally automatic under state law when the application is timely and complete, but local licensing authorities may consider the public need and applicant suitability if cause is shown. The ABCC has retained jurisdiction for appellate review, she said.
Andrea McCarthy, attorney for the Sea Coast Shores Association, told the board the group has held a license since 2012 and has had renewals without incident. She said renewals must be granted when the application is filed on time and the required documents have been supplied. “There’s been no issue with the police, fire, or noise complaints,” McCarthy said.
Opponents, organized as Friends of Sea Coast Shores, urged the board to reconsider the renewal. Their representatives alleged the association operates like a private resort in a residential neighborhood, said deed restrictions and easement rights limit the club’s authority, and claimed the club’s membership and operational model raise equity and access concerns. One speaker said a prior court action had not resolved all outstanding neighborhood issues and asked the board to use its authority under M.G.L. ch. 138 to re-evaluate suitability.
Board members said they were sympathetic to neighbors’ concerns but constrained by the narrow legal standard governing renewals and the ABCC’s appellate role. Multiple members noted that if the matter had been a new application rather than a renewal, the board would have had a different review process.
After deliberation the board voted to approve the renewal package for Sea Coast Shores Association, including the seasonal all-alcoholic beverage club license, the common victualer license, and entertainment permits. The board noted the superior court case concerning private disputes between neighbors and some current litigants remains pending and that legal questions about deeds and private easements are civil matters for the courts rather than licensing grounds in this context.
What’s next: Opponents retain appellate rights and may pursue further legal avenues; the ABCC has a hearing date set if the board decision is appealed. The Select Board said it will refer any narrow legal questions about deed restrictions and private litigation to the appropriate courts rather than treat them as license-renewal criteria at the local level.
