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Domino's lawyer: Late-night delivery deters drunk driving, keeps Boston economy healthy

Domino's wants permission to keep its Brighton operation open for deliveries until 3 a.m. Thursday through Saturday.

"There's an absolute need for late-night delivery," Domino's rep Bill Mohan told the Boston Licensing Board at a hearing this morning.

He said that rather than promoting drunken college students in their bids to go on all-night benders, delivery until 3 a.m. would actually help keep the uber-soused at home, by letting them punch in a number and get a pizza delivered, rather than trying to drive somewhere or stumble their way through the streets of the neighborhood.

Even more important, however, is that Boston has a 24-hour economy and that people working late-night shifts need sustenance to keep them going. Therefore, he concluded, Domino's is a vital part of keeping Boston's economy humming. He pointed to nurses at St. Elizabeth's Hospital as an example of workers who need cheesy fuel from the 464 Washington St. location.

Also, he added, local Domino's franchisees do a lot of community service.

City officials begged to differ.

Sgt. Michael O'Hara from Boston Police district D-14, noted the Domino's in Allston, already open until 3 a.m., is only a mile from the hospital and said Brighton Center is heavily residential and that residents deserve a good night's sleep.

Those college students? Police look at late-night Domino's as "rearming and resupplying these parties to go later and later."

He added he's worried 3 a.m. service would cause a domino effect in which all the other pizza places along Washington Street would start clamoring for 3 a.m. closing times as well.

Jay Walsh, from the mayor's office, said the Allston location could do just as well as the Brighton location in keeping the Boston economy from collapsing.

As has become typical at Domino's hearings, Mohan and residents exchanged allegations of misrepresentation. Board member Milton Wright, a former judge, said he is getting tired of that and said Domino's needs to do a better job of explaining itself.

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Comments

FWIW, this is about a mile from my house and I have no problem with this proposal.

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People actually intentionally DRIVE to Domino's to get crappy cardboard pizza? You can't be f'ing serious! I'd rather heat up a frozen grocery store pizza in my toaster oven. To each his own.

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Seriously, if a single delivery car (out of the 100's that will inevitably pass by your house on any given night) is enough to wake you up at 3:00 in the morning... then maybe you're not really built for city life :P.

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I think that everything that one needs to appreciate about the relative importance of this discussion can be gleaned from the fact that a police official from D-14 can use the phrase "rearming and resupplying" and everyone knows what he is talking about...and that a police official from B-2 could use the same phrase, everyone would know what he was talking about, and all would know that they are not talking about the same thing.

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That's some hardcore pizza you're into.

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Beer is the more critical component of a college party. Never heard of a college party where everyone bailed 'cause they ran out of pizza to go with the beer.

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Sgt. Michael O'Hara from Boston Police district D-14, noted the Domino's in Allston, already open until 3 a.m., is only a mile from the hospital and said Brighton Center is heavily residential and that residents deserve a good night's sleep.

Sweet mother of lord Jesus! How on earth will people find peace if Domino's is open until 3am?!

By the way: why doesn't anyone propose closing highways between 12am and 5am in order to give residents near highways a good night's sleep?

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That location is NOWHERE NEAR people except for 2 houses across the street (offset from the road by raised front yards above the sidewalk). The Domino's front door is also recessed from the street by both a wide sidewalk AND its own sidewalk on the commercial property side of the line.

Nobody is even going to know it's open at 3 AM except the staff and the people ordering from it.

Speaking of which, what kind of pizza do the cops think they are serving?? Pizza keeps a party "rearmed"? I thought doughy fatty food soaked up the alcohol not added more to your system.

Hey, D-14, I know none of you actually work at 3 AM to do anything about quelling those raging pizza parties...but the ones of you who are sitting around the precinct on your hands might enjoy a slice or two occasionally too just like the hospital workers. Maybe this day shifter might wanna chat with his own night shift who don't have any options at 3 AM in Brighton.

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