The Carroll County Board of License Commissioners convened on September 9, 2026, at 10:00 a.m. in the Reagan Room of the Carroll County Office Building, Westminster, Maryland. The board addressed first-time event license applications, violation hearings for three establishments, a license transfer, policy discussions, and other business. The meeting adjourned after the transfer hearing, with the next meeting scheduled for October 7, 2026.
The meeting to order of the Carroll County Board of Licensed Commissioners. We will begin our meeting as for many many years with the pledge of the flag and observe a moment of silence. Sure, yes, sir. You didn't approve of the minutes. I know I didn't approve the minutes, but that's under the other business. Thank you for reminding me, though. Shut this phone off. Mr. Riley, you want to tell us what you're going to do and how you're going to do it and why you're going to do it? Yes, sir. Thank you. My name is Sam Riley. I'm the president of the Board of Governors at the Union Mills Homestead Foundation. And I suppose this is somewhat of a an unusual first time event appearance in that this is supposed to be the 19th uh year that we've held this event. Um would be probably the 20th or 21st. We had a few cancellations due to weather there in the valley. But um this is the first time we are seeking licensing through the county system. Um we uh um have been licensed um for the previous 18 event iterations through the state nonprofit festival licensing uh uh Protocol. Protocol. I was looking for the right kind of um bureaucratic word. Um it and it's just gotten uh to be uh unwieldy. It's it's a different licensing protocol, it's a different process. They've moved to one stop, and uh we've had some other events recently and been using you know this licensing protocol. It's a lot easier and uh a lot more um accessible. Uh it's great to be able to come right in here to the county office building and make application. Um the event will be run as it's been run in the previous 18 uh years. Uh it's uh a uh festival intended to promote um Maryland craft beverages and also to serve as a fundraiser for the nonprofit Union Mills Homestead Foundation, which operates the historic site. Um the the event will be run in the uh same uh manner in which it's been run in previous years. We've got uh um we're lucky we have a very um good uh kind of collaboration of volunteers that come out. They love the event. Um we have a good core of people who come to attend the event. Um you know we have a just as mass of volunteers that greet guests, welcome them, check their IDs. You know, it's uh um great to uh um see, I guess uh the the alcohol regulation uh process in in action by by everyday citizens under the supervision of our trained staff. We've got folks who are alcohol um certified, including myself. Um of course, all the attending uh craft beverage providers have off-site permits, and uh they have alcohol um uh certified folks as well. Um the key proto, I guess um system we have is we have a uh a banding system to identify who's over 21 and who's under 21, and uh that determines kind of the who gets uh served and who doesn't. And then we uh um have a just uh it's a nice day, it's a nice event. We have the Carroll County Sheriff's present every year. Um it's got a nice security presence, and we get a lot of compliments every year for how the events run. So that's the uh the basic uh story, and uh I look forward to your questions. So basically the only difference is you're applying for a one-day liquor license versus a state license previous years, and this event's been for what you say, 19 years. Yes, that's the the only difference at all in the event. Um the the uh the the one well uh with one other slight difference is I uh this year we've invited um uh some uh wine uh uh local wine producers, if they would like to participate. This one question we've gotten every year is why don't you have any wine? And um, you know, it's we've always said this is a beer event, we don't have wine. Um and uh, you know, it's only so many times you tell somebody no that you start to realize you're turning them away. So um we have invited uh Bordie, uh we invited some others, but only Bordy is uh accepted uh will be there and uh um uh as part of the event. Inspector Ledford, as uh either you or Inspector Benford, I'm sure one of you has been there. Never any problems. Never problems.