New Liquor Store Replaces Decker's

After sitting vacant for more than a year, the former location of Decker's Wine and Spirits in Bel Air is once again open for business as liquor store.

Discount Liquor opened Dec. 5 at 401 Baltimore Pike, a store manager told Patch Wednesday.

Get daily and breaking news updates: sign up for our newsletter and follow us on Facebook and Twitter. Contact belair@patch.com with any news tips.

The location has been a point of concern for Harford County Liquor Control Board since 2011. In June of that year, the liquor board denied Decker's a liquor license and banned licensees Joseph Borromeo and Virgil Dale Davis from serving again in Harford County.

The licensees were found guilty of three charges in a May 18 hearing: failing to keep complete and accurate records of alcoholic purchases, buying alcoholic beverages from someone other than a wholesaler and making any material false statement for application of a license.

The store's partial owners later "pleaded guilty to federal conspiracy charges of extortion," according to a story on ExploreHarford.com.

The checkered past of Decker's came back to haunt the new liquor license applicants during board hearings in October. Board member Michael Thomson said he believed the board should pay close attention to the new business because it may have a connection to the former licensee, the ExporeHarford.com story states.

The board ultimately voted 3-2 in favor of granting PAS Corporation, trading as Discount Liquor, a license. Board member Sandi Tunney and Chairman Donald Hess voted against granting the license, the story states.