State rejects Sunday River Brewing Co.’s appeal of license loss
The Bethel restaurant and bar had hoped a hearing officer would reverse a decision by state officials against renewing the business eating and catering license.
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Rick and Ron Savage sitting with their attorney, Ted Dilworth in his Norway office Dec. 2 during a videoconference hearing in Oxford County Superior Court in South Paris where a judge heard arguments whether to keep their Bethel restaurant closed and whether it should lose its liquor license.
Christopher Williams/Sun Journal file photo
AUGUSTA A state hearing officer upheld a decision not to renew Sunday River Brewing Co.’s eating and catering license over COVID-19 concerns, effectively shuttering the Bethel restaurant and brew pub indefinitely.
Susan Sharon / Maine Public
An administrative officer has ruled that the state was correct in denying licenses to Sunday River Brewing Co. over continued concerns about its compliance with COVID-19 protocols.
The state Department of Health and Human Services decided not to renew the restaurant’s eating and catering license earlier this month, pointing to four citations for “imminent health hazards” and five temporary license suspensions over violations including the failure of staff and patrons to wear masks.
Sunday River Brewing co-owner Rick Savage has publicly flouted the state’s COVID-19 health protocols.
The restaurant’s owners appealed. But agency staff argued that the restaurant repeatedly violated COVID-19 protocols, including requirements that staff and patrons wear face coverings.
A lot happened in politics in 2020. Too much.
But despite the news’ fast pace, the year often felt like a long, terrible car ride to a destination unknown. Ignoring our pleas to hurry up, the driver slowly tugged us through a kaleidoscope of stupefying, horrible and extraordinary events.
Are we there yet? No.
To understand where we might be going, we need to remember where we’ve been.
January
The new year begins the way the old one ended.
President Donald Trump impeached by the U.S. House of Representatives in mid-December for asking the president of Ukraine to dig up dirt on Democratic challenger Joe Biden continues his pressure campaign to ensure he’s acquitted by Republicans in the U.S. Senate.
Rick Savage out during Sunday River Brewing Co. appeal hearing
Ron Savage says his brother is no longer involved in managing the business in Bethel, and he should be trusted to comply with state guidelines. The state does not agree.
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BETHEL Facing nearly 60 employees who are again out of work, a co-owner of Sunday River Brewing Co. in Bethel made his case Tuesday that the state reconsider its previous decision not to renew the restaurant’s eating and catering license.
The business owners, brothers Rick and Ron Savage of Bethel, hoped to get a last-minute reprieve from the court before the license expired Dec. 19, but will now have to wait for an appeal decision from the Maine Department of Health and Human Services.
The Next Draft: Bull Spit Brewing Co. in Lancaster weighs clean break, fresh start with new brewery in Winchendon
By Matthew Tota
Correspondent
Once, naively, I believed that a brewery could thrive in any town or city in this state.
I had been convinced that every community could benefit from hosting one or even three breweries. Any trepidation from local leaders would fade once they see the kind of social and economic benefits breweries offer, or get to know the hard-working small business owners running them. There are always exceptions, of course see Sunday River Brewing Co. in Maine but mostly you’ll find examples of breweries beloved in their hometowns, lauded as model businesses.