Fayetteville City Council Tables Public Drinking Ordinance Indefinitely

Alcohol, Public Drinking, ,

This week the Fayetteville City Council opted to table a proposed public drinking ordinance indefinitely.

Act 812 of 2019 by Sen. Trent Garner (R – El Dorado) and Rep. Sonia Barker (R – Smackover) lets cities create “entertainment districts” where alcohol can be carried and consumed publicly on streets and sidewalks.

Act 812 narrowly passed the Arkansas Legislature last spring, and it took effect this past summer.

So far Little Rock, Mountain Home, Sherwood, Texarkana, and El Dorado have opted to legalize public drinking in their cities’ so-called “entertainment districts.”

The Fayetteville City Council says it will study the issue and discuss it with local businesses and residents before deciding if and when to take the issue back up again.

This is very good news, but it comes as city councils in Paragould and Camden weigh public drinking ordinances of their own.

Public drinking is a scourge on the community.

It raises serious concerns about drunk driving and public safety.

Public drinking won’t attract new businesses, bolster the economy, or revitalize Main Street. It hurts neighborhoods and families.

That’s why Family Council has put together a free toolkit to help citizens oppose these public drinking ordinances.

Our toolkit contains talking points, information about problems public drinking has caused in other states, photographs of public drinking districts elsewhere around the country, and other resources you can use to fight public drinking in your community.

Click here to download our free toolkit.

Photo Credit: “Old Main from the northwest, University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, Arkansas (autumn)” by Brandonrush – Own work. Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported.

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Texarkana To Discuss Public Drinking District Tonight

Alcohol, Public Drinking, ,

Tonight at 6:00 P.M. the Texarkana Arkansas Planning Commission will meet at the Texarkana, Arkansas City Hall to discuss a proposal that would legalize public drinking throughout roughly 13 blocks of downtown Texarkana.

Earlier this year the Arkansas Legislature narrowly passed Act 812 by Sen. Trent Garner (R – El Dorado) and Rep. Sonia Barker (R – Smackover). The law lets cities create “entertainment districts” where alcohol can be carried and consumed publicly on streets and sidewalks.

Texarkana’s public drinking ordinance reportedly is in the final stages of development, and tonight’s meeting may be one of the few opportunities that citizens have to weigh in on the proposal.

Family Council has put together a free toolkit to help citizens oppose public drinking ordinances like Texarkana’s.

Our toolkit contains talking points, information about problems public drinking has caused in other states, photographs of public drinking districts elsewhere around the country, and other resources you can use to fight public drinking in your community.

Click here to download our free toolkit.

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Sherwood Passes Public Drinking Ordinance, Fayetteville’s Still Under Consideration

Alcohol, Public Drinking, ,

On Thursday the Mayor of Fayetteville heard from local bar and restaurant owners about a proposed entertainment district where public drinking would be legal at events in certain areas of the city.

Earlier this year the Arkansas Legislature passed Act 812 by Sen. Trent Garner (R – El Dorado) and Rep. Sonia Barker (R – Smackover). The new law lets cities create “entertainment districts” where alcohol can be carried and consumed publicly on streets and sidewalks.

Fayetteville’s proposed ordinance would allow public drinking at:

  • The Fayetteville Farmer’s Market each Saturday during the market’s hours of operation
  • Fayetteville’s First Thursday activities
  • Lights of the Ozarks, which is a festival of “holiday lights” that begins on the Saturday before Thanksgiving, and lasts until New Year’s Eve.
  • Any other event where public drinking is authorized by the Mayor of Fayetteville via a special permit.

Alcohol may be purchased and carried and consumed on streets and sidewalks using marked 16 oz. cups during these events.

A memo accompanying the proposed ordinance makes it clear that this is simply the beginning, and in the future the city could expand the times and places that people drink publicly on streets and sidewalks.

On Monday the Sherwood City Council voted in favor of an ordinance to legalize public drinking in an entertainment district.

The public drinking district is expected to open this fall and includes a large portion of Sherwood, north of the Little Rock area.

As we keep saying, letting people drink on city streets and sidewalks won’t improve the economy in our communities.

Public drinking raises serious concerns about public safety.

Cities like Memphis and New Orleans have had significant problems with violence in their entertainment districts.

These districts also raise serious concerns about drunk driving in our communities.

Family Council has put together a free toolkit to help citizens oppose public drinking ordinances like Fayetteville’s and Sherwood’s.

Our toolkit contains talking points, information about problems public drinking has caused in other states, photographs of public drinking districts elsewhere around the country, and other resources you can use to fight public drinking in your community.

Click here to download our free toolkit.

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