Boy's lemonade stand, shut down for lack of permit, reopens with fanfare

BALLSTON SPA, N.Y. — When a 7-year-old boy’s lemonade stand was shut down by a health inspector here last month, it became the talk of the town. Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo weighed in. A New York state senator introduced legislation in the boy’s name, and the roadside drink entrepreneur’s photo was splashed across newspapers around the country.

But, at the end of the day, Brendan Mulvaney just wanted to sell lemonade. So, on Saturday, Brendan and his family reopened the lemonade stand for one more day. Instead of raising money for a trip to Disney, as Brendan had planned to do the first time around, he and his family sought to capitalize on his newfound fame to raise money for a local family in need.

In July, Brendan set up his lemonade stand on the side porch of his house, just as he had done for the past two years during the Saratoga County Fair. This year, Brendan hung new signs, printed by a family friend, and with the help of his parents, added water and snow cones to the stand’s menu.

But an inspector with the state Department of Health soon told the Mulvaneys that they needed a permit because their venture was similar to those of permitted vendors at the fair, said Jill Montag, a health department spokeswoman. (Montag said at least four vendors inquired about the Mulvaney family’s stand.)

So Brendan’s lemonade stand closed.

But after Brendan’s dad, Sean Mulvaney, posted on Facebook about the interaction with the health inspector, the news spread quickly, leading Cuomo to issue a statement that he would personally pay the fee for any necessary permit.

The Department of Health later clarified that Brendan would not need a permit if he wanted to sell only lemonade. “The Department will continue to use its discretion to not enforce regulations on children’s lemonade stands that are limited to lemonade or a similar beverage,” Montag said in a statement.

So Saturday, Brendan’s lemonade stand was back in business. Coinciding with the World’s Largest Yard Sale at the Saratoga County Fairgrounds, Brendan raised $946 for Maddy Moore, a 12-year-old battling Blount’s Disease, a growth disorder affecting bones in her lower leg. Maddy is scheduled to have surgery Wednesday, and the funds will help the family cover transportation costs to Shriners Hospitals for Children in Springfield, Massachusetts.

By noon, as elected officials and media outlets descended on the Mulvaney’s porch, Sean Mulvaney said he was worried the attention was distracting from the ultimate goal. “It’s all great and dandy,” Mulvaney said. “My son’s loving it. But now we just got to get back to selling lemonade and try to raise as much money for Maddy.”

The parade of local politicians stopping by the stand included Republican state Rep. Elise Stefanik, who said Brendan invited her to visit when they spoke after the stand closed in July. Stefanik, who is running for re-election, said she thought the incident exemplified the “heavy-handedness of regulations” in the state.

“Here’s an example of a young kid who is doing something that is quintessentially American,” Stefanik said.

State Sen. James Tedisco introduced “Brendan’s Lemon-Aid Law,” which would exempt people younger than 16 who have lemonade stands from the health department’s permit requirements.

“When I was kid, probably half the people here had lemonade stands in front of their homes,” he said. “Nobody ever complained. Nobody ever got sick or died from the lemonade stand. It taught kids entrepreneurial skills, interpersonal relationships, how to maybe raise some money.”

Adopting the political slogan of the moment, Tedisco, a Republican who represents Ballston Spa, quipped, “We want to make lemonade stands great again.”

The mayor of Ballston Spa also visited and presented Brendan with a key to the city.

The buzz around Brendan’s stand achieved the goal the Mulvaneys had hoped for: customers.

Wendy Sarbo, who lives in Berne, New York, about 40 miles from the Mulvaneys, bought two waters from Brendan and donated an extra $3 to the cause. She had planned to attend the World’s Largest Yard Sale, but heard about Brendan’s stand on the news and said its proximity to the grounds was an added bonus.

“Everybody should stop by to support,” she said. “It’s a good cause.”

As for next year, Brendan plans to resume operations for a fourth year. But, next time, he will return to a simple menu. Just lemonade.

“It’s important to people to have something that is delicious,” Brendan said.

This article originally appeared in The New York Times.