BYOB Petitioners Set Times and Locations for Signature Drive

The group collecting signatures on a petition that calls for a vote on allowing BYOB restaurants in Ocean City has set up times and places where residents can go to sign.

Bill McGinnity, one of the Ocean City restaurateurs organizing the initiative, would not say Friday how many signatures have been collected so far. But a written release says the arrangements were set up "in response to the overwhelming number of requests for information on locations where registered voters of Ocean City can go to sign the petition."

A committee of five petitioners is attempting to gather 747 signatures of registered Ocean City voters. If the group succeeds in doing that, a public question would be included on the ballot in the Nov. 8 election. The question would propose a new ordinance to allow "Bring Your Own Bottle," or BYOB, restaurants in a town that has banned the sale and public consumption of alcohol since its founding in the 1800s.

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Read the proposed ordinance by clicking on the first PDF icon under the photo above.
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Members of the Committee of Petitioners will be available to witness signatures on the petition, according to the release from the Ocean City Restaurant Association and supporting merchants. 

"Placing the issue on the November ballot will ensure all voters of Ocean City the opportunity to privately cast their vote 'for' or 'against' this issue," the group said in its release. "Additionally, if you have any questions or need clarification regarding the specific details of the proposed BYOB ordinance, or can not make the listed times to sign the petition, a hotline has been established to assist you."

The hotline number is 609-432-8375. (The PDFs above also include a letter to the editor from Joanne Bernardini.)

The locations include:

1st & Asbury Avenue
609-399-9462
Day: Tuesdays and Fridays
Time: 4-8:30 p.m.

939 Asbury Avenue
Day: Wednesdays
Time: 4-8 p.m.

Captain Bob’s Seafood
9 East 55th Street (near Simpson)
609-391-9292
Days: 7 days a week
Times: 7-9 a.m. and 5:30-8 p.m.

500 9th Street
609-399-0113
Days: Monday Through Friday
Times: Noon-2 p.m. and 5-9 p.m.

955 Asbury Avenue
609-391-1111
Day: Tuesdays
Times: 4-7 p.m.