SENATE DOCKET, NO. 2330        FILED ON: 11/23/2009

SENATE  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  No. 2224

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts

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In the Year Two Thousand Nine

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An Act to transfer the Paul E. Tsongas Arena from the city of Lowell to the University of Massachusetts Building Authority..

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:
 

SECTION 1.  Chapter 325 of the Acts of 1994, amended by Chapter 79 of the Acts of 1995, and further amended by chapter 205 of the Acts of 1996, is hereby repealed.

SECTION 2.  All existing contractual rights and obligations of the Lowell Arena Commission with respect to the civic arena shall be assigned to the University of Massachusetts at Lowell.

SECTION 3.  All existing contractual rights and obligations of the Lowell Arena Commission with respect to the civic stadium shall be retained by the commission and the City of Lowell.  The Commission shall be renamed the Lowell Civic Stadium Commission.

SECTION 4.  (a) Notwithstanding any limitation on the number of licenses which may be issued under the provisions of section seventeen of chapter one hundred and thirty-eight of the General Laws, the licensing commissioners of the City of Lowell may issue to the authority, the university, any non-profit supporting organization of the university or to any other persons or entities operating the civic arena under a contract with the authority or the university, or who has been granted a concession by the authority or the university for the sale of food and alcoholic beverages, a license as a common victualler to serve all alcoholic beverages to be drunk on the premises of the civic arena or any part thereof and the provisions of sections twelve A and sixteen C of said chapter one hundred and thirty-eight shall not apply to such premises.  A licensed shall not be required by said licensing board under the provisions of section twelve of said chapter one hundred thirty-eight to have the licensed premises open during any hours when there is no activity being conducted in the civic arena nor shall the licensee be permitted to serve food or alcoholic beverages to strangers, travelers or members of the general public who are not attending an activity then being conducted in the civic arena.

(b) Notwithstanding any general or special law or ordinance to the contrary, said licensing commissioners are authorized to issue to the authority, the university, any non-profit supporting organization of the university or to any other persons operating the civic arena under a contract with the authority or the university or who has been granted a concession by the authority or the university for the sale of food or beverages a common victualler’s license for the premises of the civic arena or any part thereof pursuant to section two of chapter one hundred and forty of the General Laws and the provisions of section five of said chapter one hundred and forty shall not apply to the license so issued.

(c) Notwithstanding any limitation on the number of licenses which may be issued under the provisions of section seventeen of chapter one hundred and thirty-eight of the General Laws, the licensing commissioners of the City of Lowell may issue to the university, any non-profit supporting organization of the university or to any other persons or entities operating the civic stadium under a contract with the city, or who has been granted a concession by the city for the sale of food and alcoholic beverages, a license as a common victualler to serve all alcoholic beverages to be drunk on the premises of the civic stadium or any part thereof and the provisions of sections twelve A and sixteen C of said chapter one hundred and thirty-eight shall not apply to such premises.  A licensee shall not be required by said licensing board under the provisions of section twelve of said chapter one hundred thirty-eight to have the licensed premises open during any hours when there is no activity being conducted in the civic stadium nor shall the licensee be permitted to serve food or alcoholic beverages to strangers, travelers or members of the general public who are not attending an activity then being conducted in the civic stadium.

(d) Notwithstanding any general or special law or ordinance to the contrary, said licensing commissioners are authorized to issue to the university, any non-profit supporting organization of the university or to any other persons operating the civic stadium under a contract with the city or who has been granted a concession by the city for the sale of food or beverages a common victualler’s license for the premises of the civic stadium or any part thereof pursuant to section two of chapter one hundred and forty of the General Laws and the provisions of section five of said chapter one hundred and forty shall not apply to the license so issued.

(e) Any licenses issued under this section shall not be transferable to any other location and such licenses shall be renewed annually subject to the provisions of chapter one hundred and thirty-eight of the General Laws.

(f) Any license issued under this section shall expire and be returned by the licensee to the licensing commissioner upon the termination of the licensee’s lease or concession.

SECTION 5.  This Act shall take effect upon the recording of the deed relating to the Tsongas Arena to the University of Massachusetts Building Authority with the Registry of Deeds.