FORT LAUDERDALE, FLA. (WSVN) – City officials in Fort Lauderdale came together to take a hard look at possible restrictions on alcohol sales after multiple violent shootings in recent weeks.<\/p>\n
Commissioners on Tuesday were weighing two separate ordinances that would tighten rules in areas across the city that draw late-night crowds.<\/p>\n
During the commission meeting with concerned residents and businesses, city officials discussed solutions to curb the concerning rise in late-night shootings.<\/p>\n
The first proposed ordinance would roll back the last call for alcohol purchases from 4 a.m. to 3 a.m. It would also no longer allow for alcohol to be sold outdoors, and people would not be allowed to walk from one bar to the next with a drink in hand.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe need to do something to rein in the sort of indulgent environment,\u201d said Fort Lauderdale Mayor Dean Trantalis.<\/p>\n
The second ordinance would empower the city manager to designate \u201chigh impact zones,\u201d which would increase police enforcement for crowd control, public intoxication, loitering and public disturbances.<\/p>\n
It would also create a curfew requiring anyone under 18 to be with a parent or guardian in certain areas.<\/p>\n
The proposed changes would affect the city\u2019s entertainment districts, including Himmarshee Street and Beach Place.<\/p>\n
The conversations surrounding the proposed changes had already been underway for months, but they gained renewed urgency after the last commission meeting<\/a> on Jan. 12.<\/p>\n Calls for changes to alcohol sales grew louder after gunfire erupted on Dec. 28 near Himmarshee Street<\/a>, resulting in five people being hospitalized.<\/p>\n On New Year\u2019s Eve, 17-year-old Joshua Gipson Jr.<\/a>, a promising high school athlete, was fatally shot outside Beach Place and A1A, about a half hour before the start of 2026.<\/p>\n