As if the ongoing bar closing blitz in the LES weren't enough to make a person start preparing their eulogies for Manhattan's nightlife, now comes word that Community Board 6, which includes Murray Hill, is trying to ban pub crawls altogether. Wait, that would be beyond their purview? That's okay, they've got ideas to get around that.
DNAinfo reports that members of CB 6's Business Affairs and Street Life Committee discussed a draft resolution last night that would call on various state and city agencies and officials to help them crack down on organized bar-hopping. The plan started hatching after a Groupon St. Patrick's deal offered a chance to drink "copious amounts of beer" and to hang out with "fellow rowdy hooligans."
"It is clearly not in the public interest to have large groups who have abused alcohol roaming the streets," committee vice chair Stephen Dubnoff read from the draft resolution last night. Since the Board can't actually ban bar hopping, it is trying to do the next best thing: When bars come in to renew their liquor licenses they will be asked to sign a document that includes a clause not to participate in pub crawls—similar to the way that many bars in Lower Manhattan sign documents agreeing to close at 2 a.m. even if the SLA gives them the right to close at 4 a.m..
Still—deep breath—even that won't be happening just yet. Though the idea has been met with support from local community groups it will need to be approved by the full board, which doesn't meet again until September. So you've got the whole summer to talk about how somebody really ought to get a petition going to stop this!
