[HISTORY: Adopted by the Mayor and Council of the Borough of Metuchen 9-26-1966 as Ch. 3 of the 1966 Code. Amendments noted where applicable.]
[Amended 12-15-1969 by Ord. No. 69-35; 7-6-1970 by Ord. No. 70-21; 5-18-1981 by Ord. No. 81-12; 1-25-1982 by Ord. No. 82-2; 9-15-1997 by Ord. No. 97-20; 6-7-2004 by Ord. No. 2004-7; 5-15-2017 by Ord. No. 2017-09]
Annual license fees for the sale of alcoholic beverages in the Borough shall be as follows:
A. 
Plenary retail consumption: $2,200.
[Amended 12-21-2009 by Ord. No. 2009-18; 2-22-2011 by Ord. No. 2011-1]
B. 
Plenary retail distribution: $1,550.
[Amended 12-21-2009 by Ord. No. 2009-18; 2-22-2011 by Ord. No. 2011-1; 5-15-2017 by Ord. No. 2017-09]
C. 
Club license: $150.
[Amended 12-1-1969 by Ord. No. 69-33]
Not more than seven plenary retail consumption licenses and not more than five plenary retail distribution licenses shall be issued and outstanding at the same time in the Borough.
[Amended 10-17-2016 by Ord. No. 2016-24]
A. 
No new plenary retail distribution license shall hereafter be issued for, nor shall a plenary retail distribution license be transferred to, a premises within 300 feet of any such existing plenary retail distribution licensed premises in the Borough.
B. 
The aforesaid distance shall be measured in the normal way that a pedestrian would properly walk from the plenary retail distribution licensed premises to the nearest entrance of the plenary retail distribution premises sought to be licensed.
[Amended 2-22-1977 by Ord. No. 77-4; 8-1-1977 by Ord. No. 77-16; 4-6-1992 by Ord. No. 92-11; 10-16-2017 by Ord. No. 2017-15]
A. 
Licensees under this chapter shall not sell, serve, deliver or allow, permit or suffer the sale, service or delivery of any alcoholic beverages, or suffer consumption of any alcoholic beverages upon the licensed premises, on New Year's Day when it is a weekday or a Saturday, between the hours of 3:00 a.m. and 7:00 a.m.; on New Year's Day when it is a Sunday, between the hours of 3:00 a.m. and 12:00 noon; on the following Monday when St. Patrick's Day falls on a Sunday, between the hours of 2:00 a.m. and 12:00 p.m.; on other weekdays, Monday through Friday, between the hours of 1:00 a.m. and 7:00 a.m.; on other Saturdays between the hours of 2:00 a.m. and 7:00 a.m.; and on other Sundays between the hours of 2:00 a.m. and 10:00 a.m.
[Amended 2-5-1996 by Ord. No. 96-2; 9-15-1997 by Ord. No. 97-20; 10-16-2017 by Ord. No. 2017-15]
B. 
During the hours that sales are hereinabove prohibited the entire licensed premises shall also be closed, but this closing of premises requirement shall not apply to restaurants as defined in the N.J.S.A. 33:1-1t; to clubs licensed under the N.J.S.A. 33:1-12, Subsection 5, to hotels or to other establishments where the principal business is other than the sale of alcoholic beverages.
A. 
No new limited retail distribution license, as defined by N.J.S.A. 33:1-12, Subsection 3b, shall be issued in the Borough for the sale of any unchilled, brewed, malt alcoholic beverages in the Borough.
B. 
This section shall not apply to any licenses heretofore issued for the sale of unchilled, brewed, malt alcoholic beverages, nor to the renewal of any such licenses.
[Amended 10-16-1978 by Ord. No. 78-26; 5-1-2006 by Ord. No. 2006-10]
Any person violating any provision of this chapter shall be punished in accordance with the provisions of the New Jersey Alcoholic Beverage Law, N.J.S.A. 33:1-1 et seq. Any person violating any provision of this chapter, in addition to proceedings under the New Jersey Alcoholic Beverage Law, may be prosecuted in the Municipal Court and punished pursuant to Chapter 1, General Provisions, Article 1.
[Added 3-3-1980 by Ord. No. 80-7; amended 9-15-1997 by Ord. No. 97-20]
A. 
No person shall drink any alcoholic beverage in a public place. For the purposes of this section, the term drinking shall mean consuming, holding or having in one's possession or control an open or partially consumed container of an alcoholic beverage of any nature. The term "public place" shall mean any place to which the public has access and shall include any street, highway, road, alley or sidewalk and the outdoor areas and parking lots surrounding or serving any store, shop, restaurant, tavern or other place of business, as well as public grounds, parks, parking lots or other vacant property not owned by or under the control of the person charged with violating this section. The term "public place" shall not include, for the purposes of this chapter, any premises covered by a license or permit for on-premises consumption of alcoholic beverages. The prohibition of this section shall not apply to persons who have received a permit from the Mayor and Council of the Borough validly issued under any ordinance or regulation of the Borough of Metuchen.
B. 
Any person violating any of the provisions of § 53-7 shall upon conviction thereof be subject to the penalty provided in Chapter 1, General Provisions, Article 1.
[Amended 6-6-1983 by Ord. No. 83-13]
No license other than a club license shall be issued by the governing body until it has received a report and recommendation from the Chief of Police, nor shall any license be issued to any person who refuses to submit himself or herself for fingerprinting in order that the Chief of Police can report on any criminally disqualified person under the rules and regulations of the Division of Alcoholic Beverage Control.
[Added 11-7-2000 by Ord. No. 2000-13]
A. 
Definitions. As used in this section, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated:
GUARDIAN
A person who has qualified as a guardian of the underage person pursuant to testamentary or court appointment.
RELATIVE
The underaged person's grandparent, aunt/uncle, sibling or any other person related by blood or affinity.
UNDERAGE
Under the legal age for the possession and consumption of alcoholic beverages as provided by law.
B. 
Underage drinking on private property prohibited; exceptions.
(1) 
It shall be unlawful for any person under the legal age to, without authority, knowingly possess or knowingly consume an alcoholic beverage on private property.
(2) 
An underaged person is not prohibited from consuming or possessing an alcoholic beverage in connection with a religious observance, ceremony or rite or consuming or possessing an alcoholic beverage in the presence of and with the permission of a parent, guardian or relative who has attained the legal age to purchase and consume alcoholic beverages.
(3) 
An underage person is not prohibited from the possession of alcoholic beverages by any such person while actually engaged in the performance of employment by person who is properly licensed and permitted to engage in such activity under Title 33 of the Revised Statutes of the State of New Jersey, the Code of the Borough of Metuchen or while actively engaged in the preparation of food while enrolled in a culinary arts or hotel management program at a county vocational school or post-secondary educational institution; however, this section shall not be construed to preclude the imposition of a penalty under this section, N.J.S.A. 33:1-81, the Code of the Borough of Metuchen or any other section of law against a person who is convicted of unlawful alcoholic beverage activity on or at premises licensed for the sale of alcoholic beverages.
C. 
Violations and penalties.
(1) 
Fines. Upon conviction for a first offense, a violator shall be punished by a fine of $250, and $350 for any subsequent offense.
(2) 
Suspension or postponement of driver's license.
(a) 
In addition to the fine authorized for this offense, the court may suspend or postpone for six months the driving privilege of the defendant. Upon the conviction of any person and the suspension or postponement of the person's driver's license, the court shall forward a report to the Division of Motor Vehicles stating the first and last day of the suspension or postponement period imposed by the court pursuant to this section.
(b) 
If a person at the time of imposition of a sentence is less than 17 years of age, the period of license postponement, including a suspension or postponement of the privilege of operating a motorized bicycle, shall commence on the day the sentence is imposed and shall run for a period of six months after the person reaches the age of 17 years.
(c) 
If a person at the time of the imposition of a sentence has a valid driver's license issued by this state, the court shall immediately collect the license and forward it to the Division along with the report. If for any reason the license cannot be collected, the court shall include in the report the complete name, address, date of birth, eye color and the sex of the person, as well as the first and last date of the license suspension period imposed by the court.
(d) 
The court shall inform the person orally and in writing that if the person is convicted of operating a motor vehicle during the period of license suspension or postponement, the person shall be subject to the penalties set forth in N.J.S.A. 39:3-40. A person shall be required to acknowledge receipt of a written notice in writing. Failure to receive a written notice or failure to acknowledge in writing the receipt of a written notice shall not be a defense to a subsequent charge of a violation of N.J.S.A. 39:3-40.
(e) 
If the person convicted under such an ordinance is not a New Jersey resident, the court shall suspend or postpone, as appropriate, the nonresident driving privilege of the person, based on the age of that person and submit to the Division the required report. The court shall not collect the license of a nonresident convicted under this section. Upon receipt of a report by the court, the Division shall notify the appropriate officials in the licensing jurisdiction of the suspension or postponement.