HADLEY — Annual events that draw in excess of 1,000 spectators, like the Country in the Country concert and spring and fall festivals for area college students, will continue to be held at the Young Men’s Club, pending approval of one-day liquor licenses by the state’s Alcoholic Beverage Control Commission.

The Select Board Wednesday voted 4-1, with member Randy Izer voting against, to grant one-day liquor licenses to the 138 East St. club for events set for April 27, June 22 and Oct. 19, contingent on ABCC approval. The club also will have to follow conditions set following discussions its directors have had with Fire Chief Michael Spanknebel, Police Chief Michael Mason and Building Commissioner Thomas Quinlan Jr.

The decision on the one-day liquor licenses comes after the Select Board in December issued a revised club alcohol license for the Young Men’s Club, offering more flexibility for where members and their guests can be served and consume alcohol on the property, including on an outside deck. The revised license also is explicit that to rent the club’s pavilion for a wedding, reunion, graduation or other event, the person renting it must be a member of the club.

Licensing Coordinator Jennifer Sanders James said the regulations the club will have to abide by come after complaints from nearby residents last spring about noise, traffic and illegal drug consumption, following the Grass is Greener festival. “We thought this was a really great starting place of conditions,” Sanders James said.

Izer, though, said he remains worried.

The requests from the club state that the events aimed at college students would have up to 3,500 attendees, with the country music concert having up to 5,000 on site.

“I still don’t believe this board has the authority to grant them the permission to have the event,” Izer said.

Select Board member Joyce Chunglo disagreed. “Yes we do, it goes with the liquor license,” Chunglo said.

Possibly reducing the number of people attending the events was suggested by Select Board member Jane Nevinsmith.

Select Board Chairwoman Amy Parsons, though, said since they are outdoor events, there are no occupancy limits.

Club President Sean Gould said the application from treasurer John Mieczkowski Jr. calls for 3,500 tickets to be sold for SpringFest and OctoberFest, and 5,000 tickets for the country music festival. While the club has never reached that number with the college student events, should that many tickets be sold, it wouldn’t pose problems. “We have the spacing for it,” Gould said.

The 1,200 to 1,500 college students, predominantly at the University of Massachusetts, who come to SpringFest will be in a contained and fenced area. SpringFest, which raises money for ALS, or Lou Gehrig’s Disease, research, sees participants typically bused to the location, and winds down by 6 p.m.

Country in the Country will have around 2,000 concertgoers for the all-day event, while the OctoberFest, or FallFest, whill have 1,200 to 1,500 people, though it may be smaller since the club intends to organize that on its own.

Club member Richard Downie said that planning for the events has been held up without the one-day licenses and the ABCC approval.

Gould said an ABCC representative already has visited the site.

Sanders James confirmed this. “I think this is a really great solution that allows you all to go ahead and start planning, because I don’t see a problem from ABCC based on my conversation with them, as well.” Sanders James said.

Izer said he still thinks the events are too large for the area.

Select Board member Molly Keegan wondered if problems crop up at SpringFest, whether the other one-day licenses could be revoked. Sanders James confirmed this could happen.

But Gould said the situation has improved. “We’ve gotten better with every party we’ve thrown,” Gould said.

Scott Merzbach can be reached at smerzbach@gazettenet.com.