A group of Tallahassee bar owners is asking the city to help them level the playing the field. They say some late night establishments are taking advantage of a local loophole to stay open later.
In most Tallahassee establishments last call comes around 2 a.m. and doors close about 30 minutes later. That’s because of a local rule. But some establishments are staying open later. That’s because instead of a bar license they have a special restaurant license. But Scott Carswell, who operates the Moon, a local entertainment venue, says staying open later doesn’t mean more time to make money.
“There’s a four hour window of entertainment. It works in football games. Concerts and dance halls. After four hours everybody is worn out. So you don’t want them to go home til four o’clock, they’ll come at midnight. You leave it at 2:30, they’re going to come out earlier, causing a lot less problems for the city,” Carswell says.
Carswell recently traded in his bar license for a special restaurant license. He says it lets him operate in a loophole. While he has to stop serving alcohol at a certain time, he doesn’t have to close their doors. But he’s pushing for the city to close that loophole. He says as far as he can tell there’s no good reason for the establishments to stay open after last call. Simon Dag says he has a great reason –traffic.
“If we were to pass this ordinance today, my night clubs along, two of the largest night clubs in Tallahassee, we will push over 2,000 people all at once creating that 2 a.m. rush-hour,” Dag says
And some say busy traffic especially when several of the drivers have had a few drinks isn’t ideal. They say it will create a need for more police to patrol at night. And that’s something Mayor Andrew Gillum says he’d like to learn more about. He says he wants to hear from the chief of police.
The commission has tabled the discussion while it seeks more information.