Community Corner
Public Meeting Draws About 100, Yields No Action on BYOB
Mayor Jay Gillian says he has not decided whether to ask for a legal ruling on questionable language in proposed ordinance.
About 100 members of the public showed up—but no action was taken—during a special public meeting Friday in which City Council debated a specific issue surrounding the controversial .
Council members spent most of the 75-minute afternoon meeting discussing whether Mayor Jay Gillian should ask a Superior Court judge to rule on the validity of part of a proposed ordinance regulating how much alcohol a diner would be allowed to bring into an establishment.
"It's ultimately an executive decision," Solicitor Dorothy McCrosson said.
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Gillian praised council members—several of whom voiced staunch opposition to the BYOB movement, but agreed the issue should be put to a public vote—and members of the pro- and anti-BYOB public who spoke for being civil to each other.
Gillian said he has no timeline for deciding to challenge the ordinance on the quantity issue.
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A vote on the proposed ordinance allowing diners to "bring your own bottle" will be on the ballot Nov. 8. Municipal Clerk Linda MacIntyre certified Thursday that a petition contained the minimum 498 valid signatures needed to trigger a referendum.
"It's not an easy thing, but we'll get there and we'll get through it," Gillian said. "I'm uncomfortable going forward without all the facts."
MacIntyre will present her findings certifying the petition to City Council at its next meeting, on Thursday, Aug. 25.
Council members on Friday debated whether Gillian should challenge the ordinance—which both McCrosson and pro-BYOB attorney Jeff Sutherland believe is flawed—before the public votes on it, or wait until after the public vote. If BYOB is approved by voters, both sides believe the ordinance would be challenged.
One sentiment most people at Friday's meeting seemed to share: Move ahead with the democratic process that spurred the referendum to put the divisive issue of BYOB to rest one way or the other.
"Let it alone, that's what I say," Councilman Keith Hartzell said. "Let the people decide and let's get through it."
Hartzell noted the BYOB issue certainly has drawn a lot of media attention—two TV cameras were in council chambers and two trucks were parked outside.
"This is an emotional issue," Hartzell said, "and the longer it goes on it's going to rip the town apart."
