Harrisburg – Following validation of 43 bids received by the March 16 deadline for the tenth restaurant license auction authorized by Act 39 of 2016, the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board (PLCB) has issued Notices of Selection to top bidders on 18 licenses.
Winning bids range from $25,111 for a license in Butler Township, Schuylkill County to $250,112 for a license in Lansdale, Montgomery County. The average winning bid in the auction was $88,508.
The number of bids received for each of the 25 licenses receiving bids ranged from one to six.
Seven licenses – one each in Armstrong, Cameron, Crawford, Erie, Greene, Washington and Westmoreland counties – received no bids.
Winning bids and bidders are posted to the PLCB restaurant license auction web page, as is a video recording of the bid opening conducted Wednesday morning, June 17. To ensure the health and safety of PLCB employees and the public, the bid opening was conducted according to established protocols – while maintaining social distancing and other public health best practices – and was recorded for public viewing.
Top bidders have 14 days from the date of each Notice of Selection to remit full bid payment to the PLCB. If bid payment is not received within two weeks of auction award, the second-highest bidder will have the opportunity to remit its full bid payment.
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent economic impact and restrictions on businesses, the PLCB has adopted a flexible and lenient bid surety return policy for this license auction. Any winning bidder that is no longer interested in pursuing an auction license may email the PLCB by July 1 to forfeit the license and request full refund of its bid surety without penalty.
Each auction winner has six months from the issuance of the Notice of Selection to file a license application with the PLCB. Bids will be held in escrow by the PLCB, pending approval of the license application.
This auction included one license in each of the following 25 counties: Armstrong, Beaver, Berks, Blair, Bradford, Cameron, Carbon, Clearfield, Clinton, Crawford, Dauphin, Delaware, Erie, Greene, Indiana, Lebanon, Monroe, Montgomery, Northampton, Philadelphia, Schuylkill, Somerset, Washington, Wayne, and Westmoreland.
Auction revenue recognized since the first auction in 2016 totals $30.3 million, while another $1.4 million remains in escrow, pending license approvals.
The PLCB regulates the distribution of beverage alcohol in Pennsylvania, operates about 600 wine and spirits stores statewide, and licenses 20,000 alcohol producers, retailers, and handlers. The PLCB also works to reduce and prevent dangerous and underage drinking through partnerships with schools, community groups, and licensees. Taxes and store profits – totaling nearly $18.5 billion since the agency’s inception – are returned to Pennsylvania’s General Fund, which finances Pennsylvania’s schools, health and human services programs, law enforcement, and public safety initiatives, among other important public services. The PLCB also provides financial support for the Pennsylvania State Police Bureau of Liquor Control Enforcement, the Department of Drug and Alcohol Programs, other state agencies, and local municipalities across the state. For more information about the PLCB, visit lcb.pa.gov.
MEDIA CONTACT: Shawn M. Kelly, 717.783.8864