Framingham Whole Foods Gets OK To Sell Alcohol

FRAMINGHAM, MA — Framingham's Whole Foods store is on its way to being the first full-service grocery store in the city to sell alcohol.

The Board of Licensing Commissioners on Monday approved a transfer of a package store license from the former Warehouse Wine and Spirits, which used to occupy a space alongside the Whole Foods store until its closure last winter.

The addition of alcohol at the store comes before a planned expansion of the surrounding shopping plaza. When complete in 2022, the Whole Foods will expand with an addition behind the store, and will remain open during construction.

Whole Foods attorney Brent McDonald told the commissioners that alcohol would be located in the back left portion of the store. Only seven Whole Foods stores in Massachusetts sell alcohol, and it's generally geared toward craft brewers and distillers, and food pairings.

"It's not designed as a folks coming in just to buy alcohol [thing]," McDonald said. "This is seen as a complement to the food offered at this location."

The closest Whole Foods to Framingham that sells alcohol is west down Route 9 in Shrewsbury. That store also sells alcohol at a restaurant called Borgatti Bar.

The Framingham store would sell alcohol during regular hours each day, except Sunday, when sales must wait until 10 a.m. under state law. According to a floor plan shared by McDonald, the store's alcohol section would take up a cooler and four shelves.

After the licensing board, Whole Foods will get final approval from the state Alcoholic Beverages Control Commission and fire department, and should be able to start selling alcohol within about 90 days.