CITY OF NORTH LAUDERDALE

INTER-OFFICE CORRESPONDENCE

NO. 2009-017

TO: Mayor Jack Brady

Members of the City Commission

CC: Richard Sala, City Manager

Ambreen Bhatty, Assistant City Manager

Tammy Reed-Holguin, Community Development Director

Patricia Vancheri, Interim City Clerk

FROM: Samuel S. Goren, City Attorney

Jacob G. Horowitz, Assistant City Attorney

DATE: January 28, 2009

RE: City of North Lauderdale (“City”) /Broward County Ordinance – Sale of Alcoholic Beverages

Pursuant to your request, the City Attorney’s Office has examined an ordinance being considered by the Broward County Commission which, with certain limited exceptions, proposes to prohibit persons under the age of twenty-one (21) from entering alcoholic beverage establishments.

The ordinance provides, in part, as follows:

It shall be unlawful for any person under the age of twenty-one (21) to enter or remain in any alcoholic beverage establishment … or to be permitted to do so by owners, manager, employees, servants or agents of alcoholic beverage establishments…

Section 39-4 of the Broward County Code of Ordinances defines “alcoholic beverage establishments” as follows:

Any bar, lounge, saloon, bottle club, nightclub, private club, package store or any place or premises, other than a private residence or a fast-food or full service restaurant as defined in section 39-221 of this code, where alcoholic beverages are sold or dispensed for consumption by customers, patrons or members on or off of the premises, and not in conjunction with a meal. Establishments which provide only snack foods or prepackaged foods incidental to consumption of alcoholic beverages on the premises shall be considered alcoholic beverage establishments. 

Section 39-221 of the County Code further defines “fast food restaurants” and “full service restaurants”, as follows:

Fast food restaurant. A fast food restaurant shall mean a restaurant which functions for the purpose of serving either meals or individual food items, prepared and cooked in a kitchen within the restaurant to people either seated at tables on the premises or for consumption off the premises. 

Full service restaurant.  A full service restaurant shall mean a restaurant which functions for the purpose of serving complete meals, prepared and cooked in a kitchen within the restaurant to people seated at tables on the premises, and within which no entertainment is provided other than recorded or live music during the service of meals. 

The ordinance further provides exemptions for the following classes of individuals:

1) Persons under the age of twenty-one (21) who are employed by the alcoholic beverage establishment;

2) Persons under the age of twenty-one (21) who are accompanied by a parent or legal guardian;

3) Persons under the age of twenty-one (21) who are members of the military; and

4) Persons under the age of twenty-one (21) who are in an alcoholic beverage establishment during which time such establishment is not serving or selling alcoholic beverages to the public.

In short, the objective of the ordinance is to limit underage persons from entering alcoholic beverage establishments. As “fast food restaurants” and “full service restaurants” are expressly excluded from the definition of alcoholic beverage establishments in the County Code, underage persons would not be precluded from patronizing such restaurants that also happen to serve alcoholic beverages.

Though under consideration by the County Commission, the ordinance has not yet gone through first reading. The public hearing on the item is currently scheduled for Tuesday, February 10, 2009 at 2:00. We will continue to monitor the status of the ordinance and advise the City Commission accordingly.

Please contact our office if there is any additional information that we can provide regarding this matter.

SSG/JGH:lm

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