Panama City Beach Bans Beach Drinking During Spring Break

Panama City Beach, Florida sobering up for Spring Break 2016 … turn out the lights, the party is over, maybe. 

Panama City votes to ban beach drinking during Spring Break in an effort to clean up its image and crackdown on spring break partying. The council voted unanimously to ban alcohol at a special meeting that will ban drinking on the sandy beach in the city limits next Spring Break. However, if anyone thinks this is all that has to be done, they are sorely mistaken. The problem is that the drinking will still go on inside bars on the beach and then will be brought to the beach. Illegal drugs are still an issue.

None of these laws or ordinances passed deal with individual’s behavior and sadly, the kids of today are out of control on Spring Break.

Panama City Beach leaders have voted to ban beach drinking during the month of March as part of larger crackdown on spring break partying.

The city council approved the ban on beach drinking during a special meeting to address spring break issues.

The Panama City News Herald reports that the city and the county are considering additional measures to curtail spring break rowdiness after seven partygoers were shot and injured at a spring break party this year.

Local officials say they want to clean up the city’s image after negative publicity from the shootings and an alleged sexual assault that happened during other spring break festivities on the beach behind a popular nightclub.

Panama City Beach City Council Passes Spring Break Ordinances.

They also heard from community members before voting. This is what the council decided:

- The month of March will be considered spring break.
- No more sales of alcohol after 2 a.m. during spring break.
- No drinking in commercial parking lots during spring break.
- No parking in right-of-way areas after dark year-round.
- No drinking alcohol on sandy beaches during spring break.

We shall see next year if it makes a difference. I am skeptical because if college kids want to drink to excess and do drugs, they will find a way. Add in a criminal element and guns and you have a mess. Or will this just push the problem to another beach Spring Break location?