Reynoldsville council approves liquor license transfer for One Stop

At the July 16 regular meeting of the Reynoldsville Borough Council, council members approved a liquor license transfer for the Open Pantry Convenience store on Main Street.

The license is being transferred from the Who Cares Bar located south of Brockway on Route 219 in Washington Township.

Attorney Mark Kozar of the law firm Flaherty and O’Hara of Pittsburgh, which specializes in liquor licensing, read a statement to the council in support of the transfer outlining the actions the store would take to insure Pennsylvania liquor law requirements.

Those actions include limiting the amount for on site consumption to two drinks per person per day with no specials or happy hours and other restrictions. The store will use an electronic card scanner for a 100% carding of all customers wishing to purchase beer or wine. Attorney Kozar said that this system can identify false or underage ID or expired PA driver’s license. Someone who does not have proper ID cannot purchase alcohol.

Every employee who sells wine or beer will be trained through the Responsible Alcohol Management Program (RAMP). RAMP training requires re certification after two years.

After Attorney Kozar’s presentation, the council asked those in attendance if there was any opposition to the license transfer. Hearing none, council approved the required resolution by a voice vote.

One Stop in Reynoldsville is one of four stores in the chain, with the other stores in Sykesville, Treasure Lake, and Grampian. The Reynoldsville store was destroyed by a fire in January of 2019 and rebuilt on the same location, opening in November of that same year. The new store was built to the specifications required for the liquor license.

Owner Jim Brown of DuBois was present at the meeting. He thanked the council for its approval. He also thanked the council for its support after the fire.

“Thanks for all the support in Reynoldsville from everybody through the fire and everything,” Brown said. He added, “It’s been a rough year and a half, but we’re back where we need to be and we couldn’t have done it without the community. We really appreciate it.”

No time line was given as to when the transfer would take place.

The meeting then moved through routine actions, including the financial review and committee reports. Solicitor Joe Ryan said he was continuing to work on a zoning ordinance with a Clearfield firm, hoping that the proposal would be ready for the next work session. He also asked that the crosswalks on Main Street in the downtown be repainted for safety reasons.

“You can’t see them at all,” he said.

The matter was referred to council member Darren Scolese, who heads the street committee, and who promised action will be taken.

Council went into an executive session. When it returned, it approved another request from borough residents for keeping chickens on their property. This is the third such request in recent months.

Resident Jack Matusky also asked council to look into replacing the remaining old sodium street lights with LED lights. The matter will be investigated.

Council president Bill Cebulskie asked Matusky, who heads the Reynoldsville Recreation Committee, about a 5G box that’s located near the pool and soccer fields. He said some studies he’s been reading said there could be a radiation hazard. He’s concerned with the location and said he heard from local parents who felt it should not be located where children gather. Matusky wasn’t aware of it. After discussing the issue for a few more minutes, the council adjourned.

A video of the meeting can be found on our Facebook page.