Wawa Will Sell Liquor At Hatboro Store

HATBORO, PA —Eight months after being turned down by Borough Council, Wawa will be getting a liquor license for its new store after all.

Hatboro Solicitor Rebecca Geiser advised Hatboro Borough Council at its meeting Monday night to settle Wawa's appeal of when the council rejected the liquor license bid last August.

Geiser said that Wawa appealed the council's decision and sought a liquor license for its convenience store at the corner of Horsham and York roads.

Borough Council had voted 5-2 to reject a liquor license transfer at an August public hearing before 25 people in which Wawa pitched plans to sell beer and wine at the store.

Wawa had sought to transfer a liquor license from a Norristown business to 412 S. York Rd. location, but the council balked with some residents worried about whether minors might be served or whether any intoxicated people would be a disruption in an area where borough homes are nearby.

Geiser said that Wawa appealed and a court appearance was expected before a Montgomery County Court of Common Pleas judge.

Geiser said that conditions and policies would be similar to the Wawa on Horsham Road. That Horsham Township Wawa sells alcohol and Wawa officials have reported few to no issues there.

"I think a settlement is appropriate," she said. "The settlement would end litigation."

Borough Council voted unanimously for the settlement.

During the August public hearing, Ellen Freeman, an alcohol beverage lawyer representing Wawa, told the council that Wawa operated 24 stores throughout Pennsylvania —and 100 across the country —in which alcohol was sold, and a seating area was provided for people to consume at least one alcoholic drink inside the store.

Freeman went on to explain that there would be seating for 30 people who would be allowed to consume one beverage of beer or wine inside the store. They could also purchase a variety of beer: single cans, six packs or 12-packs along with bottles of wine.

She said that every person who made a purchase would be carded no matter their age and that security cameras would be focused around the refrigerators where the beer and wine are stored.