Miami Seashore to restrict alcohol gross sales throughout Spring Break to keep away from final yr’s chaos

Miami Beach will ban alcohol sales in the wee hours for two weeks in March after last year’s rowdy Spring Break celebrations led to hundreds of arrests and dozens of gun seizures.

Miami Beach City Commissioners voted Wednesday to prohibit the sale and consumption of alcohol after 2am between March 7 and March 21 along the city’s entertainment district, commonly referred to as South Beach.

The current last call is 5am for alcohol sales throughout much of the city, according to the Miami Herald.

Commissioner Alex Fernandez said the ruling will ‘ensure a safe environment as we protect the quality of life of our residents in a temporary ordinance.’

On March 20 of last year, Miami Beach imposed an 8pm curfew after multiple violent incidents involving drunk revelers, including one in which ‘a crowd of hundreds of people had formed a mob and began to use tables and chairs as weapons,’ said Police Chief Rick Clements.

‘During March – on either side of St. Patrick’s Day, at the high point of Spring Break – the disorder in our city is intolerable. It’s just that simple,’ said Miami Beach Mayor Dan Gelber on Wednesday.

Alcohol sales will be banned after 2am in South Beach between March 7 and 21 after last year’s revelers unnerved local residents. Above, women fight on Ocean Drive on March 19, 2021

The Spring Break hotspot saw hundreds of arrests and dozens of gun seizures during last year’s celebrations. Above, people along Ocean Drive on March 18, 2021

The maskless people gathered in the beaches and streets of South Beach prompted concerns about COVID, which was undergoing a spike in Florida at the time

Commissioners voted for the latest ruling 4-3 despite pleas from nightclub operators and employees who argued that a ban would cost them money while creating an unfair advantage for clubs, restaurants and hotels in other parts of the city, the Miami Herald reported.

‘From our point of view, going through that two-week period … is a danger to the public,’ said Miami Beach Mayor Dan Gelber

‘It’s just picking winners and losers. It’s wrong,’ said Jimmy Resnick, the landlord for South Beach club Exchange Miami.

‘They have to close at two o’clock. You walk approximately a block and a half and you’re at Mr. Jones – they get to open until 5 o’clock… it’s ludicrous,’ he told CNN. ‘I think that you do it citywide, or you don’t do it at all.’

Other business owners also spoke out against the post-2am alcohol ban during Wednesday’s meeting.

‘Safety is everybody’s priority. Whether you believe in two o’clock, five o’clock – it’s everyone’s priority,’ said David Martinez, one of the owners of the bar Sweet Liberty.

‘I do not believe that closing at two o’clock is going to remedy anything,’ Martinez said. ‘On the contrary, I think it’s going to allow everybody to empty out into the streets at the same time and cause probably more violence.’

Gelber and commissioners favoring the ban said it is necessary to free up police resources and ensure public safety during the height of Spring Break.

The owner of the Sweet Liberty bar, above, complained about the new rules, saying they will ‘allow everybody to empty out into the streets at the same time and cause probably more violence’

The city’s police chief recalled an incident last year in which a crowd of hundreds of people turned into a violent mob that threw tables and chairs at each other. Above, officers on March 19

On March 20 of last year, the Miami Beach City Commission unanimously decided during an emergency meeting to introduce an 8pm curfew

People gather while leaving Miami Beach after an 8pm curfew was imposed to deal with violent partygoers

Some residents also spoke in favor of the ban.

Spring Break brought large crowds to Miami Beach last year, and the city enforced an 8pm curfew to cut down on disorder.

‘For the hardship it may deliver, I’m sorry,’ Gelber said. ‘But from our point of view, going through that two-week period … is a danger to the public. It’s a proven danger to the public.’

During one incident last year, a police officer was filmed body-slamming 19-year-old James Harrison, who was ‘inciting the rest of the crowd,’ an officer told WSVN.

On March 12 of last year, police tried to break up a disorderly crowd of at least 200 near Eighth Street and Ocean Drive.

The crowd then surrounded the officers, who deployed pepper spray.

Several hundred Spring Breakers gathered to dance and drink along Ocean Drive on March 28, after the curfew had been imposed but before 8pm

The police response after last year’s curfew was markedly different from that seen in weeks before, when officers made headlines for pepper spraying and body slamming tourists

Swaths of students flocked to packed bars and beaches last year, and Governor Ron DeSantis urged people to visit the state

Above, people gather at Fort Lauderdale Beach in Broward County, near Miami, for Spring Break

Miami Beach imposed an 8pm curfew to deal with the violence, which coincided with a COVID-19 surge in Florida.

‘We’ve done everything we can to try and mitigate the behavior we’re seeing,’ Clements, the police chief, said at the time, recalling a separate incident in which a crowd of hundreds of people turned into a violent mob that threw tables and chairs at each other.

Commissioner Alex Fernandez says the post-2am alcohol ban will ‘ensure a safe environment as we protect the quality of life of our residents in a temporary ordinance’

‘Property was destroyed,’ the police chief said. ‘Then last night, we had three more (similar incidents).’

Bars and businesses were ordered closed by 8pm. Sidewalk cafés had to close by 7pm, and the McArthur, Venetian and Julia Tuttle causeways leading into the barrier island that is Miami Beach were closed from 9pm to 5am.

The curfew wasn’t lifted until April 6, according to WTVJ.

Amid the ugly scenes last year, there were fears that maskless students and other party-goers would spark a rise in Florida’s COVID cases.

Miami Beach Mayor Dan Gelber said: ‘We’re seeing too much Spring Break activity.

‘We’ve got a problem with too many people coming here. We’ve got a problem with too many people coming here to let loose.’

Miami Beach cops also seized a number of guns, a balaclava and cartridges as last year’s Spring Break led to unrest on the streets

Officers seized crack cocaine, crystal meth, marijuana and cash in a bust on Friday night

At the time, nearly 70 colleges and universities in the US had changed schedules to eliminate weeklong spring breaks.

Some schools gave students a week off and encouraged ‘staycations’ on campus, but many ignored the advice.

On March 12 alone, 120 people on South Beach were arrested and cops seized guns and drugs.

After the curfew was put in place, several hundred Spring Breakers were seen gathering to dance and drink along Ocean Drive, but the majority scattered when police arrived minutes after the curfew went into effect.