Liquor stores could be open later in Nassau County under new bill
The State Liquor Authority is holding a public hearing on the bill Friday, March 1 at the Nassau legislature in Mineola.
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Nassau County lawmakers recently approved a bill that would allow liquor stores to stay open until 10 p.m. Monday through Wednesday. Right now, liquor stores close at 8 p.m. on those days. Saturday hours would also be extended.
Ian Reilly, the manager at Post Wine & Spirits in Syosset, questions the need for extended hours.
Reilly said stores already set their own hours within the law based on local demand.
“I think that they're (State Liquor Authority) just looking to raise more tax revenue through the sale of alcohol and thinking that more hours will mean more sales," he says.
Dr. Eugene Vortsman, clinical director of Addiction Medicine and Disease Management at Northwell Health spoke about about what the proposed extended hours could mean for Long Island residents.
"It won't have any actual impact on people who are suffering with addiction...the real problem we have to discuss in so many ways is the normalization of alcohol and the frequency,” Vortsman says. “There are so many liquor stores, so many happy hours, so many things and more than that it's that comment that you say, ‘If I'm not having a drink, everyone gives you a weird look.’”
The State Liquor Authority (SLA) is holding a public hearing on the bill on Friday, March 1 at 10 a.m. at the Nassau legislature in Mineola.
The SLA notes that a final decision on extended hours to change the hours of sales for liquor and wine stores in Nassau County will be made by the Members of the Authority at a full board meeting after they gather and review comments from the public hearing.
