Rome to review alcohol rules
A city panel wants suggestions to attract more entertainment and hospitality businesses, visitors and families.
Rome’s Alcohol Control Commission has added a mission this year — looking for ways to improve the business climate while maintaining a family-friendly atmosphere.
City Commissioner Wendy Davis said when Mayor Jamie Doss assigned her the ACC chairmanship he asked her to “be innovative.” It’s a broad directive, she told the panel of appointed citizens and elected officials last week, and she’s open to all suggestions.
“I really want to get some public engagement on this, too,” she said during a follow-up interview last week.
On the table for the ACC’s March 20 meeting are discussions of the food-todrink ratio, alcohol fees and sales permits, and public consumption areas.
Selling drinks
Rome eliminated the 50-percent food sales requirement for establishments that serve beer and wine but not for those that sell liquor.
However, the City Commission recently granted exemptions to the Forum
River Center and the Rome Tennis Center at Berry College, which are publicly owned venues.
“We need to take a look at that,” said ACC member Colin Doss. “It’s something the government can do that a private business cannot.”
However, City Commissioner Milton Slack, another ACC member, expressed caution. A self-avowed teetotaler, Slack said considering exemptions on a case-bycase basis allows for better control.
Rome police Maj. Paul Webber noted that the food ratio was intended to prevent a proliferation of bars, and it’s been effective at shutting down small, fly-by-night operations.
“Now we have larger, more responsible establishments,” he added.
City Clerk Joe Smith said a review several years ago found that the smaller the city, the more likely it is to have a food ratio requirement. He’s been detailed to update that survey, and to see what others charge for licenses. The last time he checked, he said, Rome’s fees were among the highest in the state.
Lowering the price of pouring licenses for nonfood establishments is the one thing left on the wish list of Lisa Smith, executive director of the Greater Rome Convention & Visitors Bureau.
“I hear from hotel owners who want to have a happy hour or offer their guests free drinks as an amenity, but it’s not something they expect to make money on,” she said.
ACC member Monica Shepherd said she also wants to look at ways to make it easier for nonprofits to get temporary pouring licenses for special events and fundraisers.
Public drinking
Doss and ACC member John Kendrick raised the possibility of creating a district where people can walk around with alcoholic beverages.
Savannah has a wellknown open-container district and the nearby cities of Roswell and Canton established designated “outdoor refreshment” areas last year. The drinks must come from a local merchant in an official plastic cup.
Nic Diaz, marketing and sales assistant at the GRCVB, said traffic in the downtown district could be a cause for concern. While the speed limit is 20 mph, he said drivers often go faster.
“Especially since it’s so close to a major road like Second Avenue,” Diaz said. “When the River District gets going, that might be a good place.”
The River District, across the Oostanaula River from downtown, is undergoing revitalization. The Foundry Growler Station and several antique stores recently opened on North Fifth Avenue and the Courtyard by Marriott is rising on West Third Street by the renovated Barron Stadium.
Lisa Smith said the GRCVB has never had a group reject the city because it lacks an outdoor refreshment district.
“I understand the open-container concept during block parties, but I don’t know if that needs to happen every Friday night on Broad Street,” she said. “That’s not coming from this office.”
The city’s approval of Sunday pouring and outdoor dining in recent years made Rome a more inviting place for tourists, Lisa Smith said, simply because it expanded their options.
“If changes are going to happen with our alcohol rules, there’s also responsibility for consumers in general,” she said. “With Sunday sales, we just wanted to let folks here make a choice. The cities we compete against do.”
Drinking safety
Davis also tossed out a number of possibilities aimed at discouraging drunk drivers during the ACC’s preliminary discussions, including getting pouring establishments to offer designated drivers free Cokes or appetizers.
She told of a visit to Japan, when her dinner host ended up calling a cab. The company sent two drivers: One for the cab and the other for the host’s car. That may not work in the U.S., she said, but it’s an example of innovative thinking.
Another place has a shuttle bus that comes around to the bars, and patrons good-naturedly cheer and jeer those with the sense to take the bus instead of their car.
“It’s kind of a fun thing, when someone gives up their keys,” Davis explained. “I’d like us to do something to change the culture, to get people thinking it’s not an inconvenience not to drink and drive home.”
The GRCVB operates the Roman Chariot, a free golf cart shuttle that can be summoned on Fridays and Saturdays via a text. But Diaz said it only travels around the downtown area, where the speed limit is restricted.
“Outside of that, we defer to the taxis,” he said.
Lisa Smith said there have been discussions about designating taxi stands downtown, where they can park and wait for customers, but nothing has come of it so far.
The ACC’s talks on possible alcohol and alcohol-related ordinance changes are just getting started and Davis said they’re open to hearing all suggestions. The panel meets the third Monday of each month at 6 p.m. in City Hall, 601 Broad St. People also can email her at wendyforrome@gmail.com.