Miami Beach Alcohol Ban In Place, Just In Time For Spring Break
MIAMI (CBSMiami) - There's a new alcohol ban on South Beach just in time for spring break.
Miami Beach city commissioner's voted Wednesday night to prohibit the sale of alcohol after 2 a.m. between March 7th and March 21st.
Miami Beach Mayor Dan Gelber is speaking out about the planned rollback of alcohol sales, saying it will lead to a safer environment for residents, tourists and police.
The change applies to all businesses south of 16th Street.
After the two popular weeks, the alcohol sale cut-off time will return to 5 a.m. The new law comes after last year's spring breakers forced the city to impose an 8 p.m. curfew due to public disorder and clashes with police.
The mayor said last November, voters approved a citywide rollback of alcohol sales to 2 a.m. with some exceptions.
Gelber told CBS4's Peter D'Oench, "In March, this is the period when we have a huge number of people come in for spring break. There's a great amount of chaos and disorder in our city that we just can't endure. While we are going to have a 2 a.m. rollback at some point across the city it is important for us to tone down behavior and not create an all-night party scene which has been so difficult over the last few years."
Gelber said, "The best way to really let people know that they are not going to be here for all night drinking is to stop alcohol consumption after 2 a.m. in the area known as the entertainment district where most behavior happens. We know that this area is a hot spot. We know this area is the hardest area to police and we made a decision based on that."
Gelber also expressed concerns about officers' safety.
He said last year during spring break as a result of incidents, 16 officers were injured compared with 10 officers during the previous spring break.
Mitch Novick, the owner of the Sherbrooke Hotel at 9th St. and Collins Ave., said, "I think it's a good idea citywide to send a very clear and resounding message that the party is over kids. It should be citywide and applied across the board. But I think by not having it be citywide, I think the nightlife industry will be granted an injunction if they go to court."
Some tourists and residents who CBS4 spoke with oppose the rollback of alcohol sales.
Vetta Tyree, who is a tourist from Washington, D.C., said while dining at a restaurant on Ocean Drive, "I don't like it. You should be able to drink at all hours."
Kevin Almestica, who lives on Miami Beach, said, "I think they are trying to do a good deed, but I don't think this is going to work necessarily just because people don't have the time to prepare for all of this. Everyone is used to being out all night partying. I think if anything people will get upset. Police officers are going to try and come tell people that they can't drink and they'll get into an argument with them on the street."
Julia Rundell, who is a tourist from a city near Manchester, England, said, "It's not going to make any difference. Young people are still going to get alcohol during spring break."
Spring break for some colleges starts as early as February 27th and goes until late April for some colleges.