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Amid the current COVID-19 pandemic the Downtown Springdale
Alliance and Director Jill Dabbs have formulated a plan to try and help
bring more people to Downtown Springdale. They have proposed an
Outdoor Dining District That would allow the consumption of alcohol
outside of bars and restaurants with indoor alcohol permits.
On Tuesday night the City Council had the first reading of the resolution and the discussion that followed was both inquisitive and spirited in some regard. Multiple council members verbalized concerns brought to them from residents in the city about the boundaries of the district as well as the hours and enforcement of the policies. Chief Mike Peters spoke and stated he saw no problem with the district and that if he concluded there were issues he would bring them back to the council for their re-consideration.
The District would cover Emma from Shiloh Street to the West down to Water Street on the East end. It would also cover Johnson Avenue from Main to Commercial and Meadow from Blair to just past Holcomb. The block encompassing the Arts Center of the Ozarks would also be included. The entrances to the district would be marked with concrete vinyl decals provided by the DSA.
Each business that falls within the district would be allowed to decide if they would like to participate by placing a decal on their window. Questions were raised about enforcement as it was relayed to council member Amelia Williams that some business owners may not want to have to ask someone carrying alcohol to leave their establishment. Those 21 of age and older would be able to purchase alcohol in cups designated for outdoor use and marked as such and would be able to freely carry them out into the street, parks or participating establishments. The allowable hours as it currently stands would be from 10am to 10pm.
The city and its officials are currently looking for input and many read the comments here so please let your voice be heard on how you feel about it one way or another.
On Tuesday night the City Council had the first reading of the resolution and the discussion that followed was both inquisitive and spirited in some regard. Multiple council members verbalized concerns brought to them from residents in the city about the boundaries of the district as well as the hours and enforcement of the policies. Chief Mike Peters spoke and stated he saw no problem with the district and that if he concluded there were issues he would bring them back to the council for their re-consideration.
The District would cover Emma from Shiloh Street to the West down to Water Street on the East end. It would also cover Johnson Avenue from Main to Commercial and Meadow from Blair to just past Holcomb. The block encompassing the Arts Center of the Ozarks would also be included. The entrances to the district would be marked with concrete vinyl decals provided by the DSA.
Each business that falls within the district would be allowed to decide if they would like to participate by placing a decal on their window. Questions were raised about enforcement as it was relayed to council member Amelia Williams that some business owners may not want to have to ask someone carrying alcohol to leave their establishment. Those 21 of age and older would be able to purchase alcohol in cups designated for outdoor use and marked as such and would be able to freely carry them out into the street, parks or participating establishments. The allowable hours as it currently stands would be from 10am to 10pm.
The city and its officials are currently looking for input and many read the comments here so please let your voice be heard on how you feel about it one way or another.
Springdale Considers Downtown Dining District That Would Allow
Alcohol Outdoors, Looks For Public Input Before Approval