Montclair Awards Liquor License To Second Theater Nonprofit This Year

MONTCLAIR, NJ — Another theater nonprofit has nailed down a coveted liquor license in Montclair.

The Montclair Town Council unanimously voted to approve a resolution awarding a “Theater Exception Plenary Retail Consumption License” to the Vanguard Theater Company during their meeting on Tuesday.

The Vanguard Theater, located at 180 Bloomfield Avenue, has made showcasing “diverse voices and stories” a mainstay of its rotating selection of programming. Read More: COVID Shut This Montclair Theater Down. Now It's Back – Big Time

The new license is being awarded in accordance with N.J.S.A. 33:1-19.1 and 19.2 pursuant to the Theater Exception, N.J.S.A. 33:1-19.8. Read More: New NJ Law Lets More Nonprofits Serve Liquor

Montclair – like other towns in New Jersey – has a high bar when it comes to capturing a coveted liquor license. However, state law allows a township to issue a plenary retail consumption license to a nonprofit corporation which “regularly conducts musical or theatrical performances or concerts for which admission is charged,” without regard to population limitations.

In June, the Montclair Township Council unanimously voted to pass a resolution that approves a theater exception license for plenary retail consumption to Montclair Film at the Claridge LLC, the nonprofit that spearheads the town’s annual film festival. Read More: Montclair Grants New Liquor License (Here's Who Got It)

Watch footage from Tuesday’s council meeting below (video is cued to the discussion and vote on the liquor license for the Vanguard Theater).

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