Doral mayor to introduce new safety amendments for bars, restaurants in wake of CityPlace shooting
DORAL — Doral Mayor Christi Fraga is pushing for a change in her city: She wants new amendments for bars and restaurants to make them safer in honor of one of the victims of the CityPlace shooting in April.
Fraga is expecting to propose the "George Castellanos Ordinance" at the next city council meeting, named after the security guard who was killed last month at Martini Bar when he tried to break up a fight that led to gunfire. She said her goal is to prioritize public safety and family-oriented community values.
"If someone wants to continue partying after 2 a.m., then there's other areas of Miami-Dade County that [are] more acceptable," she told CBS News Miami's Nikiya Carrero.
Fraga says changes are coming and she is giving CBS News Miami more details about what those changes entail.
Since the deadly shooting at Martini Bar that claimed Castellanos' life and injured seven other people, including a police officer, Fraga has been vocal about rolling back last-call times for alcohol to 1:30 a.m., along with closing times to 2 a.m. for nightclubs and other entertainment venues.
Currently, Martini Bar's closing time is 4 a.m., and other venues nearby close around 3 a.m.
"The reason it's important to have that last call is so you can purchase and enjoy that and consume that," Fraga said. "And then, give time to shut down."
She is also proposing mandatory metal-detecting wands at every entrance and asking establishments to submit safety plans to the police for review.
"We will never legislate human behavior," Fraga said. "Taking a weapon into a nightclub or a bar is illegal. So, could this have happened at any other time? Absolutely; however, if we can put preventative measures in place that will limit liability exposure to these types of things happening in our community [then] I think that's what the actions that we should take."
These changes will solely apply to nightclubs and entertainment venues, which Fraga says only applies to six places — a majority of which are CityPlace Doral tenants.
"I just don't think Doral is that place and I think that's the most important part of what our ordinance does is it just protects the characteristics of our neighborhood," she said.
If these changes take place, businesses will face larger fines and possibly lose their operating licenses if they don't comply.