PANAMA CITY BEACH — The potential repercussions of irresponsible alcohol sales greeted hundreds of hospitality industry employees at a workshop Tuesday in the form of a license suspension notice posted on the speaker's podium.
Regulatory Compliance Services, a subsidiary of the Florida Restaurant and Lodging Association, hosted the event, and officials used the notice as an example of what not to do during Spring Break.
With the first wave of college spring breakers expected next week, the free responsible vendor training session aimed to educate attendees dos and don'ts of alcohol sales, as well as recent changes in local alcohol laws.
"The police need your help, the council needs your help, your restaurateurs, your club owners, your promoters, all of us need your help, because a responsible Spring Break is what we're all really shooting for," said Panama City Beach City Manager Mario Gisbert, who served as a guest speaker at the event. "You're the front line. If you see something, get it to someone who can address the issue."
Alongside Beach Police Chief Drew Whitman and Mayor Gayle Oberst, Gisbert outlined a series of changes to local laws coming this Spring Break, including a 2 a.m. cut off time for alcohol sales, an identification requirement for consumption on the beach and tighter event security rules.
"We want everybody to be prepared," said Oberst, who pegged Spring Break as an important piece of the Panama City Beach economy, as one of the biggest months in collections for the city's 1 percent sales tax as well as the Tourist Development Tax, or bed tax.
Despite stricter rule recommendations made by Bay County Sheriff Frank McKeithen following Spring Break last year, Oberst said ultimately the council majority opted to view those regulations from a business standpoint, rather than a law enforcement standpoint.
"The City Council at Panama City Beach couldn't take that approach because the economy of Bay County and Panama City Beach depends, to a certain extent, on Spring Break," Oberst said. "Until we have a replacement, it's important to you, it’s important to the county and it’s important to the city that we have Spring Break."
The event also featured Lt. Tony Cornman of the Florida Division of Alcoholic Beverages and Tobacco (ABT), who spoke on what agents look for in the field. During Spring Break, ABT brings in additional agents from across the state, who patrol both in uniform and undercover.
The agency also conducts compliance checks prior to Spring Break every year, Cornman said. Of the 30 checks conducted so far this month, five establishments were caught selling to underage patrons.
"We need to get that number down," said Cornman, who also referenced the suspension notice posted on the podium during his presentation. "That is our sign and we do have a few of those up during Spring Break. We do not want to have to do that this year. Please, check IDs and abide the law."