Residents: More ‘broken promises’ at beach club
DRACUT >> Long Pond residents are assailing the Sandbar Beach Club for not meeting the conditions set just last year when the Board of Selectmen unanimously approved the transfer of liquor and related licenses to the club’s new owners.
The establishment is now facing the possibility of a show cause hearing to determine whether it keeps those licenses.
“My neighborhood has changed,” Jill Pelletier, of 25 Elm Ave., told selectmen at their May 22 meeting. And the change is not what she had hoped for.
Last year’s decision involved residents of both Dracut and Tyngsboro because the club sits on the town line.
Selectmen’s meetings in both towns drew a large number of Long Pond neighbors to complain about the previous owner’s “broken promises.” The club had operated for several years as the Shoreline Beach Club. Evidence of those broken promises included “loud noise, parking issues and damage to property.”
Pelletier told Dracut selectmen at the May 22 meeting that her young daughter found a man lying on the beach who got up and staggered down the street. And her family “witnessed a 15-person brawl” outside their home.
A common complaint a year ago was the lack of access on Elm Avenue (Elm Street in Tyngsboro). Emergency vehicles still have trouble accessing the far end of the street.
“My daughter can’t ride her bike on a Saturday afternoon” due to traffic safety issues, Pelletier said.
Pelletier’s Tyngsboro neighbor, Shirley Coutu, who lives at 27 Elm St., said, “Jill’s house is a nightmare. My heart aches for her.”
Coutu then chided the Dracut selectmen for granting the Sandbar a club license. It does not meet state requirements to operate as a club, she said.
She also claimed that the Sandbar has not kept a commitment to play acoustic music. “It’s still amplified. I’m still hearing the music in my house,” she said, and gave a vocal demonstration of what the bass sounds like.
Town Manager Ann Vandal said the Dracut Police Department had received 19 complaints about the club between April 15 and May 22. The Tyngsboro Police Department has also responded to some complaints.
Selectman Joe Dirocco said, “We need to bring him in.” A discussion followed about the process for initiating a show cause hearing.
Selectmen need to receive a formal complaint from the police department and a request for a show cause hearing, Town Counsel Dave Deluca told the board. The selectmen would then vote to convene a show cause hearing, and would notify the owner that a hearing has been placed on the agenda for an upcoming board meeting.