A state committee headed by Senator Nick Spano (R-Yonkers) met in Manhattan Thursday to discuss ways to combat underage drinking.

McLean Avenue in Yonkers is a nightlife hotspot due to the cluster of bars and clubs. In June, police arrested a 20-year-old bartender for allegedly serving alcohol to a minor at a nightclub. Also, many from Westchester and other nearby counties travel to NYC to party. An 18-year-old girl from New Jersey was murdered after a night of drinking in Manhattan this summer. It?s for those reasons that Spano held the meeting on what he calls an underage drinking epidemic.

Spano and other lawmakers grilled the State Liquor Authority (SLA) about enforcement and new legislation. The new legislation states that no new nightclubs, bars or cabarets can open their doors within 500 feet of three or more businesses that already have a full liquor license. The SLA says it only applies to Manhattan and the ban is temporary. Spano wants the liquor license moratorium to extend to Westchester. He points out McLean Avenue as an example of a cluster that is negatively affecting a neighborhood.