Business & Tech

BYOB Petitioners Hope to Make Deadline With Room to Spare

A group seeking a public vote on allowing "Bring Your Own Bottle" restaurants in Ocean City needs 351 signatures.

BYOB petitioners are hoping to deliver more than 351 signatures to the City's Clerk's Office within the next week or two.

The on allowing "Bring Your Own Bottle" (BYOB) restaurants in the dry town of Ocean City, and after submitting a similar petition in the fall before withdrawing it, the petitioners say the collection of signatures appears to be going smoothly.

"The general impression I'm getting is that there are a lot more people willing to put their name on it," said Jeff Sutherland, the attorney who helped draft the petition. 

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Sutherland said the deadline for submitting the petition in time to make it onto the ballot for the May 8 municipal election is not exactly clear, so the petitioners hope to submit well in advance of a deadline that would fall sometime in early March.

The petitioners had enough signatures to force a binding vote in November 2011, but fears that a recent court case in northern New Jersey may have invalidated at least part of their proposal and start over.

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The new petition eliminates a section about consumption limits that was central to the legal concerns. Based on feedback from the public, the new petition also removes Boardwalk restaurants from the places where BYOB would be permissible.

Sutherland said a statute related to BYOB in New Jersey is in the process of being amended, but that the changes likely would not be complete before the May 8 election.

He said some opponents of BYOB in Ocean City appear to be willing to support a public vote on the issue — much like Gov. Chris Christie opposing same-sex marriage but supporting a public referendum on the issue.

To see the new and old petitions, click on the PDF icons above.

 



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