Correction: An earlier version of this story mis=reported the select board’s vote. Andover News regrets the error.
Andover parents will be able to enjoy two alcoholic beverages when they take their kids to Clown Town next month.
Oak & Iron Brewery will operate a beer garden on the annual carnival’s opening night on Friday, May 16 and from 12 to 8 p.m. on Saturday, May 17. The approval came after the select board had considered a proposal to only allow alcohol on Saturday.
“”I’d look Friday night at Clown Town a little differently. It’s pandemonium,” Alex Vispoli said when the select board considered the request Monday. “The parents are not typically sitting with their kids. That’s the teen night, that’s the Friday night, when the people just run around.”
Select board member Ellen Townsend raised concerns about serving alcohol at event attended by hundreds of children.
“Is there a thought to be had about this is a children’s event, it is alcohol at a children’s event,” she said. “I think it’s a little bit different than an adult race or that kind of thing. So it’s just something to give me pause for thought.”
The board approved the license for both days in a 4-` vote, with Townsend dissenting.
Clown Town is run by Andona, a local nonprofit that awards scholarships, camp scholarships, and grants for social and emotional programs, books, clubs and sports last year. Andona has distributed more than $1 million to support kids in Andover since its founding in 1952.