PANAMA CITY — Bay County commissioners said Tuesday they were not inclined to allow bars in the unincorporated area to stay open longer than beach bars during Spring Break.
Commissioners took no action to change its law stating the county’s alcohol sales times will match Panama City Beach’s laws, and unless the commission modifies its ordinance in the coming months, the county’s bar and liquor store closing hours would automatically go back to 2 a.m. in the month of March instead of the current closing time of 4 a.m.
On Sept. 25, the Panama City Beach City Council, as one of 16 measures to tone down Spring Break, voted to halt the sale of alcohol during March at 2 a.m. instead of the current 4 a.m. time. The second and final reading of this ordinance is scheduled for Oct. 23
Bay County has an ordinance that states its regulations for the unincorporated area will mirror the bar and liquor store closing times of Panama City Beach, and commissioners have 30 days from when Panama City Beach’s law goes into effect to change the county’s ordinance if they want a different closing time than the beach’s. Panama City, Lynn Haven and Springfield all have ordinances stating bar and liquor store closing hours will match Bay County’s.
Commissioner Mike Thomas brought up the issue at Tuesday’s commission meeting, telling commissioners that he plans to bring back before the commission three proposals for the unincorporated area that have either been adopted or are in the process of being adopted by the Panama City Beach City Council to tone down rowdiness and criminal activity during Spring Break. They are:
- Prohibiting digging holes on the sandy portion of the beach.
- Limiting the number of special events on the sandy beach per day and requiring different numbers of security and first responders at events of different sizes.
- Requiring any person with an alcoholic beverage to have a valid state-issued picture identification card or license.
He said it makes sense for the city and county to have consistent laws so sheriff’s deputies and city police have consistent laws to enforce.
Different closing times
Thomas asked fellow commissioners whether they wanted to change the alcohol sales ordinance so the scaled-back hours would impact only the unincorporated area of the beach, or instead let the current ordinance kick in so the new scaled-back hours would cover the entire unincorporated Bay County.
Commissioner George Gainer said he was concerned that if the county modified its ordinance to only scale back the bar hours on the beach, intoxicated spring breakers from the beach would drive into the county to continue their partying.
“I just hate to see a gap in it where you’d see hundreds or possibly thousands of drunks trying to cross the (Hathaway) bridge and get over here,” he said.
Jim Mascara, the general manager of Ms. Newby’s Liquors, told commissioners that hard-working people in the service industry are going to be hurt financially by the early closing hours and urged them not to scale back the hours. That business is in the unincorporated area of the county governed by the county’s laws.
“Since I’ve been here, I’ve employed thousands of hospitality employees who look forward to the Spring Break income every year,” he said. “By closing at 2 o’clock, you are going to take people and you are going to shorten their shifts. Some people will say, ‘That is only two hours,’ but it is the best hours of the day.”
As they were leaving the meeting, commissioners said the issue of changing bar hours will be studied in the coming weeks, but they were inclined to let the current ordinance stand so the county’s hours matched the beach’s hours.
“It makes more sense for everybody to be consistent and not to have a hodgepodge of regulations where it is different here and different there,” Commissioner Bill Dozier said.
Commission Chairman Guy Tunnell said he’s had conversations with Panama City officials who said they would move to scale back bar hours in the city if the county decides not to follow the beach’s lead.
“I see the need to be consistent,” Tunnell said. If not, “it poses some real serious problems for law enforcement.”
IN OTHER ACTION
In other action Tuesday, the County Commission:
-Approved of accepting a $1 million grant agreement with Florida Department of Environmental Protection to build a sewer line in the Southport area, which eventually will be part of a central sewer project that can help residents and businesses get off septic tanks and hook onto public sewer. The goal of the project is to remove septic tanks in the Southport community to protect water bodies in the St. Andrew Bay and adjoining water bodies. The first phase of the project is targeted at getting 220 residences and small commercial properties currently on septic to go to central sewer. Once completed, the project will allow for activation of an existing sewer line on state Highway 79, which fronts multiple businesses that will be able to connect as well.
-Agreed to draft a proclamation of support for U.S. Rep. Steve Southerland’s position to allow a longer red snapper fishing season in the Gulf of Mexico. Melissa Thompson, deputy district director for Southerland’s office, presented commissioners with a report put together by Southerland’s office using fishery experts’ figures on the state of the snapper species in the gulf. She said it shows the proposed shortening of the red snapper season from 40 days to 11 days is not necessary.
-Approved of a business plan with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission that will turn over the helm of the county’s new gun range to the state agency. The agreement calls for the FWC getting all revenues from the range. The gun firing ranges, which is part of the first phase of the project at 11411 Landfill Road, is slated to open Friday. The FWC will staff the new range, as well as provide free hunting safety sessions and host regional and national shooting competitions.
-Approved of another higher deductible health plan on Florida Blue medical coverage for county employees in which they pay $750 in a deductible instead of $500. The county’s pays 75 percent of the costs of the insurance.
-Approved of a 36-unit planned unit development on the north side of Back Beach Road (U.S. 98), west of Wildwood Road.
-Approved of a contract with Dr. Michael Hunter to continue as medical examiner for the 14th Judicial Circuit. Bay County would provide $468,052 for the coming fiscal year. Calhoun, Holmes, Gulf, Jackson and Washington counties would be contributing $302,150 for the coming fiscal year.